Analysis Question on The Great Society – American History
President Franklin D. Roosevelt and President Lyndon B. Johnson were inaugurated into office served with a platter of issues and tribulations. Both attempted to assist constructively through a series of programs. Roosevelt’s New Deal was created to provide ’relief, recovery, and reform’ to help ease the effects of the Great Depression, and to a great extent, Johnson’s domestic program, the Great Society, reflected many of the aims of the New Deal since they both were created to mend society while dealing with the issues at hand, such as the overwhelming poverty and unemployment rates, at the expense of the national deficit and inevitable cynicism from critics.
Conservatives were greatly upset with the liberal policies since the New Deal, and through Reagan they were prepared to call for changes in the federal, social, and economic programs since the 1930s.
3.) Many argue that the 1970s are a reflection of society in the 21st century; however when considering the social, economical, and political factors in these two decades, one can tell that to a great extent these two periods are different due to the changes in social life and political programs and policies.
The 1970s brought about many social changes in American society. There was an emergence of the counterculture which included groups such as the hippies and yippies. The hippies were turned off by the modern world so they retreated from it through communes, drugs, and mystical religions. Student and youth groups such as the YIP and SDS were also eager to see changes in society. The SDS would reflect their feelings through sit-ins and marches. Furthermore, a Sexual Revolution had emerged due to birth control (the pill) and antibiotics that cured venereal disease, thus implementing the idea of sex outside of marriage. There also was mass support for the feminist movement and the National Organization for Women. Many were speaking out to protest society’s locks on women; for example, Kate Millett’s Sexual Politics (1970) called for “a sexual revolution” to do away with “traditional inhibitions and taboos” (Garraty 873). Legislation such as Roe v. Wade (1973) gave women the right to have an abortion. In the 21st century, many of the concerns such as women’s rights and the sexual revolution are not extremely important matters. There is always a group who feels the need to retreat from the modern world; however, there isn’t a mass group of people like there were in the 70s. Furthermore, people feel free to express themselves and indulge in their pleasures which has evolved since the 70s. Overall, society today does focus on decreasing the usage of drugs, and focusing on protecting children from unruly mistakes, such as obtaining an STD; however, not all of today’s society is concerned with sexual inhibitions and women’s rights.
Political concerns have changed from the 70s until the 21st century. In the early 70s the Vietnam war was still a concern for Americans. Nixon handled this through a policy of vietnamization. Meanwhile, many anti-war protesters emerged and upset by America’s foreign relations. Groups were labeled as hawks (pro-war) and doves (anti-war). By 1973, the last troops were taken out of Vietnam, and tensions on this topic decreased, only to pave the path for another inevitable affair. The Watergate Affair made up a major part of the topics that were ensuing in the 1970s. The Watergate Affair concerned Nixon and his unlawful and “dirty tricks” campaign which led to his withdrawal from office. This affair represented American politics as corrupt and fraudulent (Garraty 848). In the 21st century, the president, George W. Bush, is also concerned with a war, War on Terrorism; however he is in the middle of one, while Nixon was at the end of the war. Furthermore, acts such as the Patriot Act are much different from those of the 70s. This act limited the freedoms of Americans due to national security concerns. Additionally, Bush has suggested in creating an amendment banning homosexual marriages. This would opposite of the beliefs of the 70s in which many were open to their sexual inhibitions and were expressing themselves no matter what type of sexuality.
The economic concerns of America in the 70s was to a great extent similar to that of today. The Ford years led to a recession in which there was much unemployment and the low levels of GNP. The 70s also brought about the two evils “inflation and unemployment.” During the Carter years, there was soaring inflation since prices were rising for a long period of time and in the 70s at a much rapid pace, which had a devastating effect on the poor, the retired, and others living on fixed incomes (Garraty 887). Similarly today, unemployment is low, yet slowly improving. Furthermore, there is large national deficit which is increasing as the demand for Medicare and Medicaid goes up. The national deficit was also high in the 70s due to the inevitable results of Johnson’s Great Society programs.
When considering the social, political, and economical factor of the 1970s and the 21st century, one can tell that the two decades were to a great extent different due to the change in times and coinciding issues.
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