Transcript The New Frontier & The Great Society

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Example of layout
#1. Pennsylvania
#2. Albany, NY
THE NEW FRONTIER &
THE GREAT SOCIETY
John F. Kennedy and Lyndon B. Johnson
Brainstorm

Who were the candidates in the 1960 election?

What were the two major issues in 1960?

How did the election of 1960 change politics?
The Election of 1960

New Politics—Television Debates/Campaigns
 Millions
spent campaigning and 4 TV Debates
 (Democrats
 Kennedy:
$6 Million; Republicans $7.5 Million)
Catholic, Wealthy & Influential
Family
 Nixon: Quaker, Former VP

Both focused on economy and were “Cold Warriors”
that would stop the forces of Communism
 Kennedy:
“Missile Gap” with US behind Soviets
 Nixon: Democrat policies would boost inflation
A Close Call…but Kennedy Wins
John Fitzgerald Kennedy

Asked for citizens to take active role in nation:
 “My
fellow Americans, ask not what your country can
do for you—ask what you can do for your country.”

New Frontier
Kennedy’s Progressive Legislative Agenda
 Increase aid to education, provide health insurance to
elderly, create Department of Urban Affairs

The New Frontier’s Difficulties

Democratic Party led House and Senate

One would think JFK could get laws passed
as a Dem

However, many Democrats liked Nixon and
JFK did little on the campaign trail for
fellow party members

Southern Democrats disliked New Frontier’s
cost and defeated many proposals
Kennedy’s Successes

Economic Gains by Deficit Spending



Defense and Space Exploration
Area Redevelopment Act and Housing Act created jobs
and helped build low-income housing in poor areas
Business Practices
Businesses keep prices low
 Labor leaders and unions reduce demands for wages
 US Steel companies raised prices—Kennedy threatens to
use cheap foreign steel and prices lower



Secondary effect: distrust of JFK by businesses
Raised minimum wage
Kennedy’s Setbacks

Tax cuts rejected
 Lower
taxes will allow companies to expand and all
will benefit
 “A rising tide lifts all boats”
 Fears of inflation

Health Insurance for Seniors voted down

Federal Aid for Education never passed
Women’s Rights

1961: Presidential Commission on the Status of
Women
 Federal
action against gender discrimination
 Right of equally paid employment

1963: Equal Pay Act signed

Women in JFK administration
 Esther
Peterson (Assistant Secretary of Labor and
director of Women’s Bureau of Department of Labor)
Rights of Disabled Americans

1961: President’s Panel on Mental Retardation
 Funding
of Research into developmental disabilities
 Educational and Vocational Programs
 Residential Treatment Centers
 Grants for prenatal care for low-income mothers

1963: Mental Retardation Facilities and Community
Mental Health Centers Construction Act
 Construction
of research centers, funds for training
personnel, grants for building mental health centers
Camp Shriver and the Special Olympics



1962: Eunice Kennedy Shriver, JFK’s sister, opened a
day camp for children with developmental
disabilities
Gave people with disabilities a chance to be
physically competitive and active
Grew into the Special Olympics program
 1968:
First Special Olympics Games held in Chicago
JFK and the Cold War
Brainstorming Activity


What did Kennedy do to stop the spread of
communism?
What were some examples of crises during the
Cold War?
Containing Communism

Concern #1: The Soviet Union and Communism
 Military
Flexibility
 Buildup
of Troops & Conventional Weaponry; Less
dependence on nukes; Special Forces)
 Economic
Aid to Latin America
 Alliance
for Progress: $20 billion to establish schools,
housing, health care, and fairer land distribution
 Chile, Colombia, Venezuela, Central America reformed
 Creation
 Help
of the Peace Corps
fight poverty in less developed nations
 2 year stints for volunteers
 Examples: Sewage systems, Medical Technology, Roadways,
Teach English, etc.
The Space Race



Soviets won race with Sputnik in 1957
Yuri Gagarin became first person to orbit space in
1961 (Soviets beat US again)
Kennedy: “this nation should commit itself to
achieving the goal, before this decade is out, of
landing a man on the moon”
The US in Space

1962: John Glenn orbits Earth

1965: Apollo orbits Earth
 Used

Saturn V—most powerful rocket
July 20, 1969: Moon Landing
 Neil
Armstrong, Edwin “Buzz” Aldrin, Michael Collins
 “That’s one small step for a man, one giant leap for
mankind”
Crises of the Cold War

Bay of Pigs Invasion (April 1961)

Berlin Wall Goes Up (June 1961)

Cuban Missile Crisis (Summer of 1962)

Death of JFK (November 22, 1963)
Bay of Pigs


1959: Castro overthrows Batista and
reforms Cuba
Eisenhower feared use of Cuba as a base for
communism—planned attack
 La
Brigada: Cuban exiles trained by CIA to invade
 Kennedy approves plan

April 17, 1961: La Brigada invades
 Complete
disaster—boats in coral reefs, air support
cancelled, almost 1400 exiled Cubans killed/captured
Berlin Wall

Khrushchev upset with
Germans fleeing to West
Germany
 Wants
US, British, and France to
withdraw from Berlin
 Kennedy refuses

Khrushchev responds with wall
and guards willing to shoot
and kill those trying to escape
to capitalistic West Germany
Cuban Missile Crisis

Summer of 1962: US learns Soviets building military
base in Cuba
 October
22: Kennedy announces to public that spy
planes show USSR has long-range missile in Cuba
 Kennedy
orders naval blockade of Cuba to stop
delivery of more missiles, demanded missile sites to be
dismantled, and warned US would respond if attacked
Cuban Missile Crisis (continued)


USSR offers deal: promise not to invade Cuba and
remove Turkish weapon site in return for missiles
being removed from Cuba
Results of Crisis
 Treaty
on Nuclear Testing—Not in Atmosphere
 Khrushchev looks weak for retreating from Cuba
 Khrushchev loses power in one year
 USSR show military inferiority and starts arms races
Warren Court Reforms Activity
Review
Why was the election of 1960 important in regards to
politics?
Why was Cuba important during the 1960s?
What were some of the big Supreme Court cases
under Earl Warren?
Brainstorming Activity

Who is Lyndon B. Johnson?

What did the Great Society focus on?
LYNDON B. JOHNSON &
THE GREAT SOCIETY
United States History
JFK is assassinated

November 22, 1963 in Dallas, Texas

Lee Harvey Oswald: man accused of killing JFK
 Shot
to death two days later while in police custody by
Jack Ruby

Warren Commission (1964): Report looking into JFK
assassination
 Headed
by Chief Justice Earl Warren
 Finding: Oswald was the lone assassin
Lyndon B. Johnson

Vice President to JFK

From the “hill country” of Texas; much different style than Kennedy

Known for making things happen by bargaining or finding a
consensus

Believed the US should continue Kennedy’s policies

Began a crusade on poverty in America


50 million people in poverty according to Harrington’s The Other
America
Mostly in slums, Appalachia, the Deep South, and Native American
Reservations
Election of 1964
Focus of Great Society

War on Poverty

Civil Rights

Health care

Education

Consumer and Environmental Protections
The Great Society’s Programs
Review/Brainstorm





Review
What were some of the Great Society’s programs?
How did Lyndon B. Johnson gain support after the
JFK assassination?
Brainstorm
What was the Civil Rights Movement?
Who are some notable people involved?
What was the Montgomery Bus Boycott?
Civil Rights Movement
Montgomery Bus Boycott
Overview

“Separate but Equal” Doctrine (Plessy v. Ferguson)

Rosa Parks

Montgomery Bus Boycott
Group Activity

Please get into the following groups:
Group 1
Group 2
Group 3
Shannon
Mike K.
Shelby
Shane
Carrie
Erica
Kassidy
Nate
Elon
Group 4
Group 5
Group 6
Atlanta
Trevor
Brandon
Billy
Tim
Jamie
Nadia
Zacc L.
Mike C.
Activity Procedure


For today’s class, we will be looking at the
Montgomery Bus Boycott through a series of
documents.
You will be expected to discuss as a group what the
significance of these documents are and will be
required to answer a series of follow-up questions
towards the end of class.
Documents

Pg. 1: Montgomery City Code

Pg. 2: News Recap of Conference to Stop Boycott



Pg. 3: List of African-American Needs (according to
Montgomery citizens)
Pg. 4: Editorial Regarding Overturning Plessy v.
Ferguson
Pg. 5: Integrated Bus Suggestions by African-American
population
Questions to Consider (Discussed)





Pg. 1: What is the significance of this code? What does it
really mean?
Pg. 2: What did the African-American community request?
Were these requests reasonable? Why or why not?
Pg. 3: How does the separate but equal doctrine get
questioned by the African-American population? (Give
Examples)
Pg. 4: How do you feel about the editorial? Would you
expect the writer to be an African-American? Why or why
not?
Pg. 5: What do you think about the suggestions? Give your
opinion on at least three.