The Popular Culture of 1960s-1970s: Dissatisfaction with the Role of Government
The history of the United States is characterized by numerous events and cultural developments that transformed the views and expectations of Americans. Analysts acknowledge that the period beginning in the mid-1960s resulted in a new upheaval that changed the experiences of more people (McConnell and Hart 647). Majority of the citizens realized that the economic boom and consumer society associated with the post-war period had ended.
The country would enter into a new period whereby political power and expectations changed significantly (McConnell and Hart 648). The infamous Watergate scandal, the tragedy associated with the Vietnam War, and poor economic performance led to a new popular culture intended to project people’s skepticism and dissatisfaction with the American government.
The late 1960s and the 1970s presented a complex period in the history of the United States. During the time, more people were compelled to purchase a wide range of products at higher prices. The level of political upheaval increased as the country grappled with the events ad outcomes of the Vietnam War. The population became unhappy since gas prices and living conditions had skyrocketed due to the experienced inflation (McConnell and Hart 650). Coincidentally, the country’s political power shifted to the Southwest and Southern regions whereby more jobs and opportunities appeared to emerge. Such a social and economic trend was observed to disorient the economic and political outcomes of more citizens in the country.
The nature of these challenges occurred at a time when the nation had experienced numerous challenges in the 1960s. For instance, the Civil Rights Movement protests, the assassination of John F. Kennedy, the death of Martin Luther, and the issues surrounding the possible global nuclear war remained fresh in the minds of Americans (Kula et al. 8).
Majority of the people were convinced that the United States was no longer the land of opportunities they had been used to for decades (Kula et al. 9). During the same period, the global community continued to experience increasing competition in the areas of trade and manufacturing. The ongoing Cold War appeared to affect or disorient the country’s social, economic, and political goals. The declining percentage of job opportunities in the U.S. worsened the experiences and outcomes of more citizens.
The period under investigation was associated with tumultuous events and issues that made more Americans uncomfortable and incapable of realizing their maximum potential. The youth were at a disadvantage since a generational gap had emerged that worsened their economic and social opportunities. The government of the day remained uncommitted or unwilling to support the experiences and outcomes of most of these underserved members of the society (McConnell and Hart 652). Consequently, the individuals were keen to rely on the power of popular culture as a powerful strategy to showcase their contempt and dissatisfaction with the government.
From the 1970s, majority of the young Americans responded to the government’s failure by arranging and engaging in large scale demonstrations and protests. These campaigns were intended to attack most of the opposed engagements, including the Watergate scandal and the Vietnam War. During the time, citizens belonging to different racial groups were involved in protests intended to fight for their civil rights. Kula et al. indicate that feminist movements began to take shape in the 1970s since more women wanted to remain recognized and have access to various social and economic opportunities (18). Student’s movements became the norm throughout the 1970s since most of them wanted to government to become more involved and accountable to its people.
The combination of these efforts triggered a new popular culture intended to challenge the ills that had become predominant in the country. For instance, more people were keen to fight all forms of disfranchisement, segregation, abuse, and poor governance. As part of the promoted culture, more young people began to choice outrageous attires, pursued individualism, and ignored social norms, such as marriages.
New forms of plays, music, film productions, formalities, drug use, and behaviors emerged in the country as majority of the people tried to voice their views in response to the government’s failure (McConnell and Hart 658). Through the lens of these attributes of popular culture, readers and analysts can appreciate the intensity of Americans’ dissatisfaction and response to the failure of the government from the 1960s to the 1970s.
Impacts of the Political and Economic Changes from 1945 to 1960
The United States emerged victorious following the end of the Second World War. This achievement would trigger a number of opportunities and events that supported the country’s social, economic, and political developments. From the late 1940s, America entered its Golden Age, a period characterized by positive economic gains and the subsequent expansion of capitalism (Chin 767). The recorded events made it possible for different sectors to thrive, thereby changing the outcomes and fate of most of the American citizens.
From 1945, the government of the United States supported different industrial efforts that led to the production of modernized cars, aircraft, machinery, and equipment that would help fuel economic development. The increasing military spending in response of the ongoing Cold War, the presence of affordable mortgages, and the emergence of job opportunities led to positive growth. The country’s infrastructure system expanded exponentially due to the technologies and ideas borrowed during the war period. Emerging policies and ideologies resulted in the promotion of long-term employment and provision of individualized benefits (Rafique et al. 175). The emergence of the television made it possible for more people to borrow progressive ideas from other parts of the world.
The complexity of these achievements and developments led to the formulation of new ideologies and pursuits that would have long-lasting implications on the future of the country. The U.S. would experience additional political concepts and ideas that encouraged those in power to focus on the lifestyles and outcomes of more people. The country’s foreign policy would be instrumental towards painting a positive image of economic and political prosperity (Rafique et al. 176). Majority of the people would get new opportunities to travel widely and learn more about the economic and cultural attributes of other groups in different parts of the world.
These economic and political changes experienced between 1945and 1960 led to the birth of modern popular music. Most of these works of art were a response to the recorded achievements and social relations. More people were keen to experiment and consider revolutionary ways to pursue their own versions of the American dream. During the time, some of the groups were keen to pinpoint the injustices and forms of discrimination that existed in the contemporary society (Chin 769). Consequently, the people would rely on film and music as powerful tools to challenge some of the questionable practices.
Throughout the period, more people would come to realize that civil rights were critical and capable of supporting them to realize their social and economic goals. With the government of the day doing very little to empower the minorities, majority of them chose to rely on their opportunities and economic gains to fight for their rights. These ideologies would set the stage for the modern civil rights era that would be experienced for more years to come (Chin 773). The emerging insights led to the birth of the Beats Generation, a new art movement intended to challenge the formalism, status quo, and ideologies that had remained dominant in the country for centuries. The people wanted a new form of thought were the targeted readers would be keen to promote quality, fairness, and access to opportunities.
With these achievements, a new popular culture depictive of the American society would emerge that promoted various values. For instance, the promoted culture supports shared identity, a sense of purpose, and goals that transcends the recorded political, ethnic, geographical, and religious differences (Rafique et al. 179). Such ideologies have gone further to reshape the manner in which most of the people pursue music, theater, art, recreation, and cultural practices. A consumerism approach emerged as the most of the citizens focused on the central question of the American dream. However, some gaps continue to exist due to the government’s failure to identify and implement progressive policies that could ensure that all citizens are able to realize their maximize potential in the areas of culture, society, health, economy, and politics.
Works Cited
Chin, Warren. “Technology, War and the State: Past, Present, and Future.” International Affairs, vol. 95, no. 4, 2019, pp. 765-783.
Kula, Stacy M., et al. “Vietnamese Americans: History, Education, and Societal Context.” Journal of Southeast Asian American Education and Advancement, vol. 16, no. 1, 2021, pp. 1-25.
McConnell, Allan, and Paul ’t Hart. “Inaction and Public Policy: Understanding Why Policymakers ‘Do Nothing’.” Policy Sciences, vol. 52, no. 1, 2019, pp. 645-661.
Rafique, Shanawer, et al. “A Critical Analysis of Pop Culture and Media.” Global Regional Review, vol. 7, no. 1, 2022, pp. 173-184.