Helping a student do a report on the 60's, what can you tell me about he 60's?

Question

real life experiences and book expierence is good too.

Answer 1

The 60s era began "Rock and Roll". Elvis Presley began his reign over the concerts and theatres. The Beattles came to America from England and were on the JOhnny Carson Show as was Elvis. The styles were changing. MIni-skirts were beginning to sell. Two piece bathing suits were making a splash. It was a constantly changing era for the younger generation. I found some great sites with a lot of information for you & your friend to review. Have fun reading our "ancient history". Have a great holiday.
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Answer 2

I grew up in the 60s and my memory of that time is that it was pretty chaotic, scarey and intense. The Civil Rights movement was underway but lots of Americans like George Wallace were not very open to the idea of equality for all so there were protests and demonstrations and not an unconsiderable amount of hostility and violence. There was the Vietnam War and the protests against it ended in essentially a police riot at the Democratic National Convention in Chicago in 1968. Many protestors were beated by the police. President Kennedy was asssassinated in 1963 which shocked the whole nation. Plus the Cold War was going on and I and many other people were terrified nuclear war would break out at any time and the entire world would be destroyed in a matter of minutes. The most intense historical event related to that was the Cuban Missle Crisis which really almost ended in World War III. Those times were much more frightening to me than the current terrorist threat because everyone know the Soviet Union had the BOMB and could use it at any time.

This was also the time period when illegal drugs were first emerging in a big way particularly marijuana and LSD. So that just added to the whole chaos of the times.

Answer 3

I wasn't there...or then...

But 1969, may be the most important year in history. We lost many legends and did many first. It was also the climax of the largest movements of the 60's.

But here are major themes of the 60's: Sexual Revolution, Civil Right Movement. Women's Rights, Space Age, Vietnam War (cold War)

Big events in '69 are woodstock and Charles Manson murders
January 27 - Fourteen men, 9 of them Jews, are executed in Baghdad for spying for Israel.
January 30 - The Beatles give their last public performance, on the roof of Apple Records. The impromptu concert is broken up by the police.
April 9 - The Harvard University Administration Building is seized by close to 300 students, mostly members of the Students for a Democratic Society. Before the takeover ends, 45 will be injured and 184 arrested.
June 8 - U.S. President Nixon and South Vietnamese President Nguyen Van Thieu meet at Midway Island. Nixon announces that 25,000 U.S. troops will be withdrawn by September.
February 4 - In Cairo, Yasser Arafat is appointed Palestinian Liberation Organization leader at the Palestinian National Congress, and takes command the next day.
June 28 - The Stonewall riots in New York City mark the start of the modern gay rights movement in the U.S.
July 16 - Apollo program: Apollo 11 (Neil Armstrong, Buzz Aldrin, Michael Collins) lifts off toward the first landing on the Moon. [9 and 10 took place earlier in '69]
August 9 - Members of a cult led by Charles Manson murder Sharon Tate, (who was 8 months pregnant), and her friends Abigail Folger, Wojciech Frykowski, and Jay Sebring at Tate and husband Roman Polanski's home in Los Angeles, California. Steven Parent, leaving from a visit to the Polanskis' caretaker, is also killed. More than 100 stab wounds are found on the victims, except for Parent, who had been shot almost as soon as the Manson Family entered the property.
August 15-August 18 - The Woodstock Festival is held in upstate New York, featuring some of the top rock musicians of the era.
October 31 - Wal-Mart incorporates as Wal-Mart Stores, Inc.
December 4 - Black Panther Party members Fred Hampton and Mark Clark are shot dead in their sleep during a raid by 14 Chicago police officers.

Ongoing events
Vietnam War (1964 - 1975)
War of Attrition, between Egypt and Israel, which lasted until August 1970. This conflict was characterized by escalating artillery duels, air raids and commando missions

Answer 4

Depending on his age your student should try and narrow his focus from 'the 60's' to something like the sexual revolution feminism and 'the pill', rock and roll or perhaps the political atmosphere of the 1960s. A general overveiw of the 1960s is by far too easy for any high school student.

Answer 5

Hippies drove VW vans with graffiti spray painted all over. The 60s were the dawning of the age of Aquarius. They were the years of the Viet Nam war, drugs, sex, and rock and roll. Women were taking "the pill" and finally had sexual freedom. We wore bellbottom pants, mini skirts, go-go boots, and nehru collars. People tripped on LSD and jumped out of windows thinking they could fly. We listened to the music of Sonny and Cher, the 4 Tops, Bob Bylan, Van Morrison, the Doors, and the Guess Who. We had the British music invasion and listened to Donovan, Herman's Hermits, Dusty Springfield, Rolling Stones, and of course, the Beatles. People protested and stood up for what they believed in or against. They preached "make love, not war."

Answer 6

I was newly married in the early sixties when my husband was drafted during the Vietnam War. I was moving from my teaching job in Missouri to be near him in training at Ft. Bragg when I stopped at night by myself with Ohio license plates in a small Alabama town to get something to eat. When I sat down, an older man threateningly called out that I had Ohio plates and was probably one of those Northern liberals who was coming to the South to register Black people to vote. The thoughts of the young white and black men that had just been murdered by hanging for registering people to vote went through my mind and I was frightened. Everyone was silent and just stared at me. I finished eating and with heart pounding I drove all through the night, afraid to stop, until I got to my destination. This moment seemed to embody so much of the dissension, hate, bigotry, misunderstanding, division and the war that I have never forgotten. I learned a lot that dark, lonely night.
StarGalactica

Answer 7

Ask your grandparents


This is a great opportunity to get better acquainted with your grandparents, presuming you are the student. They'd probably be thrilled at your interest in their lives and, who knows, you may learn something about them and yourself that will make the bond between you all stronger.