An Era of Activism ( )

23 An Era of Activism (1960 1975) Vocabulary Development You can learn about a word by studying familiar words inside it, its part of speech, and a context sentence. You can then use the remaining word parts to build a meaning. Look at the word wheels below. The first one is completed as an example. Use it as a model to complete the remaining three wheels. Vocabulary discharge unprecedented ratification activism Familiar Word Inside: charge = fill with an amount Familiar Word Inside: active = causing action or change Meaning of Other Word Parts: dis- = do the opposite of discharge Part of Speech: verb Meaning of Other Word Parts: -ism = characteristic behavior activism Part of Speech: Likely Meaning: to send or pour forth Context Sentence: The factory discharges smoke every day. Likely Meaning: Context Sentence: Activism includes working for the rights of women. Meaning of Other Word Parts: un- = not Familiar Word Inside: precede = to occur before in time Likely Meaning: unprecedented Part of Speech: Context Sentence: The cold weather is unprecedented in our sunny state. Meaning of Other Word Parts: -ation = result of an action Familiar Word Inside: ratify = make officially valid Likely Meaning: ratification Part of Speech: Context Sentence: Ratification is the final step in making a change to the U.S. Constitution. Reading and Vocabulary Study Guide 213

SECTION 1 Guide to the Essentials Women s Movement TEXT SUMMARY During women s early struggles for equal rights, the word feminism was first used to describe the idea of political, economic, and social equality of men and women. In the 1960s women, inspired by the civil rights movement, realized that organized protests and legal action could bring about change. In 1966 a group of professional women founded the National Organization for Women (NOW). Its goal was to bring women into full participation in American society. It called for equal pay and opportunity. It challenged the idea that women should be expected to stay home, and called for men to share parenting and household responsibilities. By the early 1970s thousands of women were supporting equality for women. Many people s attitudes began to change as more women entered professional fields. A controversial issue was abortion and a woman s right to legally end an unwanted pregnancy. THE BIG IDEA Women won the right to choose through the 1973 Roe v. Wade decision of the Supreme Court that struck down state regulation of abortion. Inspired by the success of the civil rights movement, women began to Many women also campaigned organize and work to add the Equal for equal rights. Rights Amendment (ERA) to the Constitution to prohibit discrimination based on gender. Congress passed the ERA, but it was not ratified by the states because of growing opposition. GRAPHIC SUMMARY: Median Incomes of Men and Women REVIEW QUESTIONS 1. Describe the goals of the National Organization for Women. Equal pay was a main goal of the women s movement. 2. Graph Skills What was the average woman s income in 1975? 214 Reading and Vocabulary Study Guide

SECTION 1 Guided Reading and Review Women s Movement A. AS YOU READ As you read Section 1, answer the following questions on the lines provided. 1. What conditions in society helped bring about the women s movement in the 1960s? 2. What experiences did women gain while working in the civil rights movement that helped them later in the women s movement? 3. What factors helped raise women s consciousness of social issues related to women? 4. Why was the National Organization for Women (NOW) founded? 5. What differences divided the women s movement? 6. Who opposed the women s movement, and for what reasons? B. REVIEWING KEY TERMS Define or identify each of the following terms. 7. feminism 8. National Organization for Women (NOW) 9. Roe v. Wade 10. Equal Rights Amendment (ERA) Reading and Vocabulary Study Guide 215

23 Ethnic SECTION 2 Guide to the Essentials Minorities Seek Equality TEXT SUMMARY During the 1960s and 1970s racial and ethnic minorities in America also fought for equality. Latinos, people whose origins are in Spanish-speaking Latin America, organized against discrimination in housing, education, and jobs. Led by César Chávez, Latino farm workers struggled for equality. A farm worker himself, Chávez founded the United Farm Workers THE BIG IDEA (UFW) union to improve conditions During the 1960s Latinos, Asian Americans, and Native Americans began effective equal rights movements of their own. for migrant farm work- ers, people who moved around the country to plant and harvest crops under backbreaking conditions. Chávez believed in nonviolence, and he used boycotts against California grape growers to demand change. Supported by many people, the boycotts brought improvements for farm workers. Asians also protested racial discrimination. Through the Japanese American Citizens League (JACL), Japanese Americans sought compensation for their losses because of World War II internment. The government eventually made small payments to Japanese Americans. Asian Americans made economic advances faster than most ethnic groups, but still faced discrimination. Native Americans had many grievances with the federal government over equal rights, broken treaties, and land rights. Poor living conditions, high unemployment, and poverty on the reservations led to the formation of the American Indian Movement (AIM). They sought autonomy, or self-government, and other legal rights. After many confrontations with the government, new laws were passed to improve educational facilities for Native Americans and grant selfdetermination. GRAPHIC SUMMARY: Latino Victories in the 1960s Labor Under leadership of César Chávez, United Farm Workers union makes important financial, health, and safety gains for farm workers. Politics Latinos began to organize against discrimination in the 1960s. REVIEW QUESTIONS 1. How did César Chávez help win better working conditions for workers on grape farms? Latino Victories Voters elect Texans Henry González and Elizo de la Garza to the House of Representatives. José Angel Gutiérrez creates La Raza Unida, a political party to support Latino interests. Civil Rights Mexican American Legal Defense and Education Fund helps Mexican Americans gain civil rights and encourages Mexican American students to become lawyers. 2. Diagram Skills What state did Henry Gonzáles represent in Congress? 216 Reading and Vocabulary Study Guide

23 Ethnic SECTION 2 Guided Reading and Review Minorities Seek Equality A. AS YOU READ Below are four main ideas from Section 2. As you read, fill in at least two supporting details under each main idea. Main Idea: Latinos faced various forms of discrimination. 1. 2. Main Idea: Latino activists brought about significant progress in labor and politics. 3. 4. Main Idea: Asian Americans made some progress in their fight against discrimination. 5. 6. Main Idea: Native Americans faced unique problems, which they tried to fight against, but achieved only limited success. 7. 8. B. REVIEWING KEY TERMS Define or identify each of the following terms. 9. Latino 10. migrant farm worker 11. United Farm Workers (UFW) 12. American Indian Movement (AIM) Reading and Vocabulary Study Guide 217

SECTION 3 Counterculture Guide to the Essentials TEXT SUMMARY During the 1960s and 1970s the values of many young Americans ran counter to those of traditional American culture. Those in this counterculture promoted freedom and individuality and challenged the authority of mainstream America. Their freer fashions and styles, like working-class clothing and long hair and beards, rejected the stiffness of the corporate world. Often they identified with the poor and downtrodden. The new generation also demanded freedom in personal relationships, leading to a sexual revolution. Young men and women experimented with different living arrangements, including living together outside of marriage. Part of this new freedom involved using psychedelic drugs. Drug use, especially marijuana, became more widespread. Music also contributed to the cultural changes of the 1960s, with popular youth rock groups such as the Beatles and the Rolling Stones. Symbolic of the new wave of music was the 1969 gathering of counterculture youth at the Woodstock festival in upstate New York. Some 400,000 people listened to major rock bands and enjoyed fellowship with each other. Some looked at it as a model for the new, more peaceful world. Many THE BIG IDEA others, both young and old, During the 1960s deplored Woodstock, disturbed many young by what they saw as a rejection Americans experimented with new of traditional morals and important mainstream values. By the ideas about clothes, 1980s the young people of the drugs, and personal counterculture had grown older, relationships. and most, who came from middle-class America, drifted back into the mainstream culture. GRAPHIC SUMMARY: The Counterculture New fashions such as miniskirts and bell-bottom jeans become popular. Sexual revolution brings new views of sexual behavior. Counterculture Use of marijuana and psychedelic drugs such as LSD grows. Both men and women grow their hair long. Men wear beards. 400,000 people gather for Woodstock music festival in 1969. Members of the counterculture experimented with a variety of new ideas and attitudes. REVIEW QUESTIONS 1. Describe the contrasting views of the Woodstock festival. 2. Diagram Skills What impact did the counterculture have on drug use in the United States? 218 Reading and Vocabulary Study Guide

SECTION 3 Counterculture Guided Reading and Review A. AS YOU READ As you read Section 3, fill in the chart with details describing the counterculture. ASPECTS OF THE COUNTERCULTURE 1. Style and Fashion 2. Sexual Behavior 3. Drugs 4. Music B. REVIEWING KEY TERMS Answer the following questions. 5. What were some characteristics of the counterculture? 6. What was the importance of the Woodstock festival? Reading and Vocabulary Study Guide 219

SECTION 4 Guide to the Essentials Environmental and Consumer Movements TEXT SUMMARY The 1960s and 1970s also saw the birth of the environmental and consumer protection movements. Environmental movements demanded preservation and restoration of Earth s environment. Inspired by Rachel Carson s book Silent Spring, condemning the chemicals that were poisoning the environment, groups organized around the country. Activists protested pollution THE BIG IDEA and toxic wastes. The gov- ernment responded to environmentalists During the 1960s activists began fears over possible nuclear accidents by establishing movements to protect the Nuclear Regulatory the environ- ment and improve the safety of consumer products. Commission (NRC) in 1974 to oversee the safety of nuclear power plants. As concerns about environmental damage grew among the public, the government also established the Environmental Protection Agency (EPA) to set national antipollution standards. The EPA enforced these standards through the Clean Air Act and the Clean Water Act, which controlled air and water pollution by industries. Because of concerns of business that new regulations would cost them too much and cause loss of jobs, the government tried to balance the demands of economic development and environmental protection. The consumer movement demanded safety for consumers and workers. It had roots in early-20th-century efforts, such as those of the muckrakers, to protect the public. But in the 1960s and 1970s the movement grew larger and stronger. Led by consumer activist Ralph Nader, who has devoted his life and work to consumer protection, scores of volunteers investigated the automobile and food industries. They reported on the safety of products from baby food to insecticides and inspired consumers to demand protection from harmful products. GRAPHIC SUMMARY: Major Environmental and Consumer Protection Laws Year Law Purpose 1964 Wilderness Act Set aside lands to be preserved for future generations. 1966 National Traffic and Forced the automobile industry to confront safety problems. Motor Vehicle Safety Act 1967 Wholesome Meat Act Set regulations for the meat -packing industry. 1970 Clean Air Act Developed program to prevent air pollution. 1972 Clean Water Act Created to protect the nation s water resources. 1973 Endangered Species Act Established protection for plants and animals in danger of extinction. The environmental movement of the 1960s led to strong new environmental laws. REVIEW QUESTIONS 1. What was the impact of Rachel Carson s Silent Spring? 2. Chart Skills What was the purpose of the Endangered Species Act? 220 Reading and Vocabulary Study Guide

SECTION 4 Guided Reading and Review Environmental and Consumer Movements A. AS YOU READ As you read Section 4, draw a line through the term or name in each group that is not related to the others. Explain how the remaining terms or names are related. 1. Rachel Carson New Deal DDT Silent Spring 2. Sierra Club Barry Commoner bald eagles Gaylord Nelson 3. Nuclear Regulatory Clean Air Act Clean Water Act Environmental Protection Agency Commission 4. Ralph Nader Alaska automobiles consumer movement 5. Silent Spring Washington Post The Closing Circle Unsafe at Any Speed B. REVIEWING KEY TERMS Identify each of the following terms and explain its role in helping the environment. 6. Nuclear Regulatory Commission (NRC) 7. Environmental Protection Agency (EPA) 8. Clean Air Act 9. Clean Water Act Reading and Vocabulary Study Guide 221

23 Test IDENTIFYING MAIN IDEAS Write the letter of the correct answer in the blank provided. (10 points each) 1. The word feminism describes the theory that A. women are superior to men. B. women should have equal rights withmen. C. women should focus on traditional roles. D. women should not work outside the home. 2. Which of these was a result of the women s movement of the 1960s? A. The Equal Rights Amendment became law. B. Women began earning more than men in most jobs. C. Women won the right to end an unwanted pregnancy. D. Women were no longer allowed to join the military. 3. Many women rejected the women s movement because they A. preferred traditional roles. B. thought it was too weak to be effective. C. did not support women s right to vote. D. opposed equal pay for women. 4. The Latino population in the United States is made up of people whose family origins are in A. Africa. B. Latin America. C. Spain. D. Asia. 5. César Chávez fought to improve the lives of A. farm workers. B. Latino students. C. Native Americans. D. miners. 6. Which of these was a goal of Japanese American activists? A. To gain compensation for losses suffered during their World War II internment. B. To convince Congress to pass anti-asian immigration laws. C. To prevent Hawaii from becoming a state. D. To allow Japanese American students to attend American colleges. 7. The American Indian Movement worked to A. secure citizenship rights for Native Americans. B. gain Native American self-government and to regain traditional Native American lands. C. convince Native American children to accept white culture. D. sell Native American lands to large industries. 8. The counterculture of the 1960s valued and promoted A. corporate and business influence. B. personal freedom and individuality. C. beautifying America. D. classical music. 9. In Silent Spring, Rachel Carson warned Americans of the dangers of A. chemical pesticides. B. nuclear power. C. unsafe automobiles. D. strong environmental laws. 10. The consumer movement of the 1960s was spearheaded by A. passage of the Clean Water Act. B. Ralph Nader s campaign to improve auto safety. C. the government s effort to enforce environmental laws. D. the falling price of food and other products. 222 Reading and Vocabulary Study Guide