Erica Gohil

Grace Cho

Saara Mohammed

Kaylin Youn

                                                 

 

 

 

Welcome to the 1970's!

 

 

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Business & the Economy by Kaylin Youn 

 

    From the start of the 1970's, America strived to becoming a solid nation. It was doing fairly decent, in a sense that things in the government and the country itself, were doing well without issues. However, just like any other country, it wanted more and more to become the best. The country itself wasn't too large; containing only 6% of the whole world. Oddly enough, our small nation consumed 30% of the world's energy. The Americans would use more energy in a whole week, than everyone else in a year. Soon enough, energy consumption became a problem. The amount of energy that America needed was lacking, and The 1970's were an important decade because it was in the process of building America into a supported and strong country. Due to the Vietnam and poverty war, America struggled through a tough period of time. By the end of the 1960's, inflation began to come into the picture when America didn't raise taxes. The Organization of Petroleum Exporting Countries (OPEC) had began to create shortages in oil in 1973-1974. Even after the shortages, the gas and energy prices stayed decently high, creating inflation once again, and soon enough, rising the rate of unemployment. This sparked foreign competition, a tight tug on the federal budget; causing the stock market to slow down intensely. The Vietnam War continued on until 1975, when the president at the time, Richard Nixon, resigned as president, due to impeachment charges. At the same time, a handful of Americans were caught as hostages at the US Embassy in the city of Teheran and were held there for over a year. The 1970's was an absolute outrage, and it couldn't control the littlest things happening, including economic affairs. America's trade bargain's prices were lowered and a lot of expensive and high-quality imports ranging from fancy automobiles to gadgets were imported in to the United States. 

 

                                                                               

 

 

Education by Grace Cho     

     Education in the 1970s was a time of rapidly changing educational trends and the educational department across the nation was affected by the racial issues related to busing and school segregation. The 1970s experienced the support of conservative educational policies from President Nixon (who took office from 1969 – 1974), a rise in activism of teachers, and the establishment of the Department of Education by President Jimmy Carter. Education was also indirectly impacted through the events occurring at the time. After the Civil Rights Movement, an attempt was made to compensate for the damage done because of discrimination in schools in the past. This was called busing, which is a plan for promoting school desegregation. The plan calls for minority students being transferred to white schools and white students being transferred to a largely minority school. This is to try and balance out demographics in schools considered an action called compensatory justice.Swann v. Charlotte-Mecklenburg Board of Education was where this action began.

     In 1975 with the government trying to improve the type of education students across the nation were receiving, they took a large step towards reaching out to those in need. The IDEA (Individuals with Disabilities Education Act), previously called the Education for all Handicapped Children Act of 1975 was established to aid students with disabilities that may bring a disadvantage to them when it comes to learning. This act called for all public schools to make available to all children with disabilities an opportunity to receive a free appropriate public education that would fit the needs of the child. Also, the school is required to review annually the progress of the disadvantaged child with parents and teachers. Then later on in 1979, under President Nixon, the Department of Education was established to come up with better ideas and solutions in bringing a better education and future to all students in America.

     There were also many events that affected schools and campuses across the nation. During the early 70s, the anti-war movement was a very prominent social movement and it greatly influenced the behavior of college and university students. The anti-war movement was a reaction to the Vietnam War that trudged along the 1960s to the early 70s. This movement actually consisted of mostly independent interests and contradicted with many other issues, only uniting in opposition to the Vietnam War. This movement attracted members of college campuses, middle-class suburbs, labor unions, and government institutions. Though the movement peaked in 1968, it carried on to the 70s. As like many other previous social movements in America, the violent tactics of campaign took a toll on four college students. The Kent State massacre involved four students being gunned down by Ohio National Guardsmen attempting to stem the anti-war demonstrations. This event led to another demonstration a week later protesting the shooting of the students in Ohio and Nixon’s excursions in Cambodia. These anti-war movements affected college education creating a gap in the process of education for students nationwide.

 

"How to Tell If Your Child Is a Potential Hippie"

 

Fashion by Erica Gohil

  

     Fashion from the 1960's were brought in by the Hippies, who donned clothes from many different ethnic groups. Some examples are Nehru jackets and loose flowing robes. These styles made designers like Yves St. Laurent become famous. The 1970's was the disco age, thus came about the hot pants and Spandex tops. For women, the mini, maxi, and micro skirt became very famous, as well as the halter neck dress, silk scarves, and flared trousers. As for men, the platform soled shoes, white suits for the disco, and white short-collared shirts were serious fashions worn amongst most men. The flared trousers and bell bottoms were worn both by men and women.

 

      

hot pants & Spandex top                                                        flared pants                                                                   bell bottoms 

 

Film and Theater by Saara Mohammed

 

     Theater in the 1970s was defined by unique playwrights, and plays that were not influenced by the need for yearly hits or tainted by overexposure. Playwrights were able to experiment and innovate without the influence of commercial productions. Movies separated from Hollywood traditions and, like all of the arts of the time, moved away from the mainstream and moved toward personal statements. Because of this individuality, filmmakers were considered the most influential artists of the decade.

     Film and Theater of the decade covered a variety of themes and topics. “Blaxploitation” movies were a new type of cinema that was commercially marketed for and created by blacks. Richard Pryor was famous for his work in comedic films, Ben Vereen acted in stage musicals, and James Earl Jones, Cicely Tyson, and Paul Winfield were highly regarded in their craft. All-black productions on Broadway were taking audiences by storm. Plays written by black playwrights aimed to raise black consciousness. Women were also making an appearance in films and plays. Their work made them role models, and certain actresses, including Jane Fonda, Faye Dunaway, Diane Keaton, and Liza Minnelli became known as the screen women of the decade. In theater specifically, new material was found off-Broadway in an attempt to create new and unique films. This trend gained the most popularity when A Chorus Line was presented at the New York Shakespeare Festival (Baughman). It reignited Broadway with successful originals including Annie and Sweeny Todd. Theater was flourishing so much that Pulitzer Prizes were once again being awarded. Productions from off-Broadway revived theater, which became commercial and mainstream. Americans reminiscing about past music genres influenced the films produced at the time giving way to movies like Grease and American Graffiti. The dance craze of the 1970s was featured by John Travolta’s dance moves in the films Saturday Night Fever and Grease. The dance craze spread to theater as well: A Chorus Line was a musical about a group of struggling young dancers. The current events of the 70s also contributed to changes in Film and Theater. Science fiction shaped films like Planet of the Apes, and Star Wars. Star Wars was considered a blockbuster of times, among others like The Godfather, The Sting, and The Exocist. Disaster, horror, science fiction, and Vietnam dramas became popular giving evidence of the current events of the time having an effect on film and theater. Blockbusters like Spielberg’s Jaws and Lucas’ Star Wars revolutionized special effects and led other movies to produce sequels once they had. 

 

 

Food &  Drink by Erica Gohil

 

  The 70’s was a decade of much expansion, including food. Americans in the 70’s were big on meats especially beef, beef was a large part of the American diet because it could be used to create a variety of dishes.  One of the biggest benefactors of this rise in the consumption of meat was Hamburger Helper, hamburger helper was a booming company in the 70’s because all you really needed was a pound of ground beef to create a delicious meal. One major food trend in the 70’s was fondue, many people bought fondue pots which usually held melted cheese or hot oil so that people could dip they’re bread or meat in. Fondue also played a big role in the social aspect of the 70’s, many people would come together to have fondue parties and play one of the most popular games, twister.  In the seventies the crock pot grew in popularity, since many women back then had jobs the crock pot was a good way for them to keep the food warm all day, so that when you reached home a meal was already prepared and ready to eat. During the 1970's, party food was a big hit. Salad was especially favored by many. There were lots of choices given, as well as different types of salad dressings. Some examples of popular salad dressings are: French dressing, Russian dressing, Ranch dressing, Thousand Island dressing, Italian dressing, and Green Goddess dressing. Other party foods included Fondue, Chicken Chow Mein, Lasagna, Deviled eggs, Cantaloupe slices wrapped with ham, Quiche Lorraine, and many many more.

 

Print Culture by Kaylin Youn

 

In the 1970's, it seemed to be as though it was the Golden Age of American journalism. There was a LOT going on in that time period; from the Vietnam war to President Nixon... The reports from Vietnam was very big, the Pentagon Papers were being published despite the fact that President Nixon tried to hide them from the American public, which caused him to become disgraced by the American news media. According to the New York Times newspaper, 62 million copies of the country's 1,748 daily newspapers circulated each and every day. The Congress had said that it wanted to insure a diversity of editorial viewpoints, and ended up passing a law that made it easier for some financially troubled newspapers to keep going. The Newspaper Preservation Act fit the media world of 1999 also. While there were opposing viewpoints on its effect, people had said that newspaper structures were varying in many ways, although their basic principles were the same. In the 1970's, they knew that it was important that people gave their own opinions on the same newspaper. Donna Patterson, a Deputy Assistant General in the Justice Department's antitrust division, tends to think that the 1970's law did some service. "I guess historically, it's been a success", she said, "because it's preserved voices longer than they would otherwise have been preserved". As said before, the print culture ranged from music to personal journals of people. It was a given that the print culture was very open to opinions of the public. In the 1970's they knew that they couldn't take away the power of the people, especially through an important source such as the print. 

 

Sports &  Games by Grace Cho

 

The 1970s were referred to the “Golden Age of Video Arcade Games”. In September of 1971, the Galaxy Game was first installed at a student union at Stanford University. This was the first arcade game ever, meaning it was the first coin-operated video game. Then in November of 1971, the game was manufactured and released to the world for the first time after being created as an arcade version of that game. In 1972, the first “home console system” was released by Magnavox called the Magnavox Odyssey. Games like Pong, Pac-Man, Table Tennis, Space Invaders, and Asteroids were popular in this era. With the arrival of this new phenomenon, the popularity grew leading these games to be installed into malls, restaurants, and popular social outing areas. Besides electronic games, board games were widely played in America. Party games like Twister and Clue were very popular among children and teens and the infamous Rubik’s Cube was released to the public in 1974.

 

     In terms of sports, the 1970s are remembered as the decade that the Pittsburgh Steelers made a breakthrough. During this decade, many sports associations were transferred to the many associations that we know of today. The American Basketball Association (ABA) founded in 1967 was taken in as the NBA in 1976 after the league folded. The World Hockey Association (WHA), lasting from 1972 – 1979 was taken in as the NHL after that league also folded, and the World Series Cricket was a league that lasted from 1977-1979 that attracted players from all around the world to compete. Then there was the “Battle of the Sexes” which was a turning point in history for the female race in sports. This was a tennis match between Billie Jean King and Bobby Riggs, who believed that women’s games were inferior and so they battled it out, King rising victorious, and a victory that was celebrated by women all around the world.

 

Music by Saara Mohammed  

     The 1970s was a time when music was changing rapidly. Music fans stopped supporting mainstream popular music and separated into fans of several types of rock, moving away from the unanimous support of one genre. There was a need to create a personal independent statement. The decade saw downfall of rock and roll and pop and the transition to different subgenres. Despite the end of a genre, new styles of music like punk and disco were born in the 70s. 

     Soul music was also very popular near the beginning of the decade. Black artists created “socially relevant music” for an audience with mixed races, instilling pride and identity in the black community (Baughman). Black women artists sent the message of independence and self-realization, themes that went with the ideas and movement of the decade—a movement away from the majority and towards independent statements. Their work also encompassed their culture and “the black experience” (Baughman). Several black women singers were songwriters including Phoebe Snow and Joan Armatrading, Carry Simon, and Carole King, the most commercially successful female songwriter in history. 
     Women singers also contributed to the creation of the new genres of the 1970s: Patti Smith was a major influence in the punk-rock movement, a new division of rock that was born in the New York underground. It started out in the 1960s from “garage” bands and groups like the Velvet Underground and the New York Dolls. It reoccurring themes of alienation, rebellion, and violence. New Wave sprung from punk, also developing out of the underground near the end of the decade. It became popular on college radio and included artsy, quirky bands like the Pretenders and the Cars.

     The other main music movement of the decade was completely different but also gained a lot of popularity. It was disco, the pulsing, catchy, and percussive music of dance clubs. It became very popular on the radio in 1974 (Baughman). Artists that exemplified the disco movement included the Bee Gees and Donna Summer. Disco music led to a dance craze that was known as a popular art form.

     Not only did new movements of music arise, but the 1970s featured a revival of music from past genres of the 60s and 50s. Music from early rock ‘n’ roll, Broadway musicals, and big-band music became popular again. Some of this reminiscing was due to the crises of the decade, specifically the Watergate Scandal and Vietnam (Baughman).

     Music divisions took place across the different genres: rock fans were shaken by the deaths of Jimi Hendrix, Janis Joplin, and Jim Morrison separated rock’s audience into following different genres like British rockers, art rockers, of southern rockers. Pop music lovers listened to the Carpenters and the Osmonds, as well as Elton John and David Bowie, the Eagles, and Fleetwood Mac. Country music rooted in Nashville of the decade aimed to mix with pop creating the success of artists Olivia Newton-John, Anne Murray, and Linda Ronstadt. Country music was becoming increasingly commercialized throughout the decade.

 

The Following Video Gives a Summary of Several Famous Music Artists in the 1970s:

 

 

 

 

"The Way We Lived" by Grace Cho

 

Due to the many new views of life that the 70s had created, many new trends and activities were beginning to form the lifestyle of the 1970s. The brand that many people know today, Tupperware, began its home shopping program in the 70s, though instead of ordering online, you would have to go through catalogs. Hot air balloon sails doubled from 1971 – 1977 and if you could do something with yarn, people did it. As dialing 911 was introduced in the late 1960s, a study was shown in the 70s on how people were reluctant to call 911. They believed that their emergencies weren’t “urgent” enough. Also in the 70s, many young people started to join cults magazines such as People, Playboy, National Geographic, Reader’s Digest, and Sports Illustrated were being distributed. The first Earth Day was celebrated in 1970 as the population began to realize that our doings were destroying the earth. Mottos like “Give a hoot, don’t pollute!” and the discovery of solar energy and recycling was newly introduced. The slang of “Groovy, far out!, cool, and excellent to the max” were becoming popular. Themes such as rainbows, frogs, and owls gained popularity while drug abuse became an important issue that was affecting the nation.  Contrary to the drug use problem, having a healthy body and  a healthy mind was stressed as important.

 

 

 

Government & Politics 

     Government in the 1970s went through several setbacks. America had many limits on their power abroad: we were unable to win Vietnam and settled for a peace treaty in 1973 which just acted as proof of a fail of policy. We were dependent on foreign oil creating two shortages, and we had prolonged trade imbalances and a drop in global markets. Not only did the U.S. face these challenges but we had a hard time correcting them: military power and economic pressure, and efforts to create a new foreign policy were ineffective. Several actions by President Jimmy Carter also contributed to the downward spiral: his human-rights policy worsened U.S. economic interests overseas, and he was unable to stop Soviet movements in Africa and Asia, which hurt his presidency. A symbol of America’s weakness was the 1979 capture of American diplomats in Iran.

     By the 1970s, President Nixon, who was a prominent “cold warrior” realized that military spending was making the United States and the Soviet Union bankrupt (Baughman). The U.S. found an opportunity to weaken other countries when there were new tensions between the Soviet Union and Red China. Later in 1972 the U.S. had negotiated a weapons- control agreement with the Soviet Union and also began talks with China. This continued during the presidencies of Ford and Carter—they increased American trade with Communist powers. When Soviet operations in Africa and Latin America were known to violate human rights, American conservatives used it to their political advantage and another decade of Cold War continued. Carter had increased American defense spending and tensions between superpowers returned.

     During this decade there was a continued problem with constitutional authority. Most important legislation was being done by the President or the Supreme Court instead of Congress. The President also solely covered foreign policy, specifically the two wars of the decade: Korea and Vietnam. The dealings with the Watergate Scandal also emphasized Congress’ decreased power. It was delayed in its removal of the President and was unable to immediately confront him until the media had spread the controversy. If the tape containing the illegal actions was not available Congress wouldn’t have been able to act at all. However, Congress was able to regain its power: it passed the War Powes act which “forced the executive to seek congressional authorization for military engagements” , it made threats to end funding for the Vietnam war, and made decisions about South Vietnam allowing it to fall, and investigated the abuse of power by organizations like the CIA and the FBI. It rejected two Supreme Court nominees and passed the Equal Rights Amendment. All this restoration helped the legislative branch but hurt the executive. Nixon’s plans in African and with the Soviets were stopped by Congress and energy policy failed because of “congressional dilution” (Baughman). The public began to regard the Presidents as weak and Congress as too aggressive. This led to Ronald Regan’s re-election as a result of the hope that he would return authority to the executive branch.  

 

Leadership by Erica Gohil

 

In the seventies there were many people that people looked up to, however one of the most influential persons of that time was President Richard Nixon. Nixon was a president that knew what the people want; he did many things in Vietnam and was a huge supporter of desegregation.  Nixon didn’t believe in the Vietnam War, but he also knew that the American people would be upset if they were to back out, so he decided to replace American troops with South Vietnamese one which could lead the halt of public protests taking place all over the country about the draft.  Nixon’s goals represented much of the people during that decade, the seventies was a time where people had a lot of pride for their country and Nixon’s actions raised the view that American people had towards their country. Nixon also was a big supporter of desegregation; he believed that racism was the greatest moral failure of the United States. Nixon used this idea of integration to help create better schools for all kinds of children and by the end of 1970 only 18% of Southern black children were still in all black schools. Nixon’s view on segregation helped influence the views of many other people, and helped the desegregation grow in all parts of the country.

Another influential person was Elizabeth Anne "Betty" Bloomer Ford the wife of late president Gerald Ford.  Betty Ford was a feminist and a big advocate of women’s equality during the 70’s. Her along with many other women helped open doors to careers in business, politics, education, science and the law. As well as getting rid of oppressive sexist laws. With women like Betty white speaking up about the unfair treatment of women, it gave a new found confidence for others to stand up and speak up about the way they were being treated while encouraging them to take action towards what they believe in. 

 

 

Law &  Justice by Kaylin Youn

  

 It was during the 70's that the Law and Justice began to become more involved in the central social and political conflicts that included crime, the rights of the accused and the death penalty.These three topics seemed to be the main social issues. The conditions of the prisons in America were questioned by riots and populations that stood a stand for the use of stricter sentencing that were affected by the rising crime rates. Additionally, the aspects of school transportation and desegregation were carried on into court, as well. However, it seemed that these topics weren't the greatest deal. The Supreme Court had overstepped its constitutional role, said my President Nixon. He said that the Warren court's expansion of the rights of accused criminals, including the busing to desegregate public schools were unnecessary. His criticism brought the Supreme Court into a more conservative direction. Additionally, the court established a woman's right to an abortion; including the idea that protections against employment discrimination be expanded. 

  Nixon had a huge affect on the ethics in government and his law-and-order stance was underlooked by the behavior of his OWN administration. An interesting case was the "Watergate Affair", which was the administration of Nixon's enemies list. The illegal seaches and wiretapping saw it as governmental contempt against the law. "Koreagate" was the scandal that involved bribes from Korean lobbyist, and were subjected to driving the congressmen into similar judgments. Therefore, the government officials were driven to look more closely at their adherence to the law.  

 

Religion by Saara Mohammed  

 

     In the 1970s there were several changes in society that affected religion. There was a lack of membership for Mainline Protestant Churches because people felt that they no longer had a relation to organized religion. The Church had trouble dealing with cultural changes of the decade. The Church was very influential in its strong opposition to the war in Vietnam, and also opposed President Nixon during the Watergate scandal. This mix of politics and religion was in part the reason for the Church’s lack of membership. Not only did the religion struggle with politics but it had difficulty dealing with changes in society like feminism. Several churches argued over whether women could be admitted to the ministry, but most agreed that they should be able to. Protestant churches were unable to get fully used to the new relaxed standards about birth control, premarital sex, abortion, and homosexuality. There was an increase in the number of conservative Protestants (or Evangelicals) who accommodated the changes in economy, society, and politics. 1976 was even called the “Year of the Evangelical” (Baughman). Membership grew and these churches made decisions on issues that the aforementioned churches had trouble dealing with. Evangelicals also reaped the benefits of new television ministries. The Christian Broadcasting Network was the largest. Evangelicals also took part in politics by deciding to “save America’s soul” (Baughman). The Roman Catholic church went through changes that resulted in priests and nuns leaving their orders and giving way for lower people to make religious decisions. Pope John Paul II gained popularity in the 1970s. Several events in the Middle East affected Jewish communities in the U.S. On Yom Kippur in 1973, Arab states launched a surprise attack on Israel. American weapons were given to Israel because most of their weapons had been destroyed. Evangelicals supported Jews in the U.S. at that time. There was an increase in nontraditional religions brought from overseas that were seen by some people as cults and guilty of brainwashing. They argued that they new religions separated converts from their old communities, and their families. Others were tolerant of the new faiths. 

 

Positive Political Cartoon by Erica Gohil

 

gerald ford cartoon.bmp  

 

gerald+ford+cartoon.bmp  

"Blogs: Steve Greenberg's Cartoons / Ventura County Star." Blogs : Ventura County Star. Web. 10 June 2010. http://blogs.venturacountystar.com/vcs/greenberg/archives/2006/12/. 

 

 

 

Gerald R. Ford came into Presidency August 1974. Many of the challenges that he faced starting right into presidency was, first off, the aftermath of the Watergate scandal. He also faced " inflation, reviving a depressed economy, solving chronic energy shortages, and trying to ensure world peace." (Gerald) Ford believed that solving the problems of the American society would bring a better life for all Americans. (Gerald)

 

Negative Political Cartoons by Erica Gohil

"Political Cartoons of the 70's - Part 2 - Nixon!" Political Cartoon Blog by Jerry Breen. Web. 09 June 2010. <http://jerrybreen.blogspot.com/2008/06/political-cartoons-of-70s-part-2-nixon.html>.

 

Nixon in the Dog House! This cartoon follows the "Watergate" scandal, around the time of Nixon's resignation from Presidency in 1974. This cartoon resembles another scandal during his Presidency when Nixon was running for Vice-Presidency, reporters had made public that he had a secret "slush" fund. Nixon denied these accusations, but he did say that he recieved a personal gift from an admirerer; a black and white Cocker Spaniel named Checkers. He said he would not return the dog because his two little daughters had fallen in love with it. The public responded by being sympathetic and elected Nixon and Ike. After some other scandals, he failed to come up with other affectionate speeches like the Checkers one, thus, this political cartoon.

 

 

MYP Unit Question: How did culture, events and leadership shape and reflect post-WWII America?  

     The 1970s was a decade of change and freedom in different aspects of art, society, and religion. It was mainly shaped by the events and leadership of the time, including President Nixon and the Vietnam war. These factors affected everything: from aspects of culture like music, film and theater, fashion, games and sports, and food and drink to parts of the U.S. that greatly influenced the Americans of the decade. These aspects included law and justice, government and politics, print culture, education, and the economy. Several changes in all these aspects affected events that became famous in others. The changes in different parts of America during the 1970s led in turn to new changes that defined the era.

 

     The presidency of Richard Nixon and and events that happened in its duration led to many changes that both improved and hurt America. Nixon was the start of many different policies including education and law and justice. He criticized the expansion of the rights of accused criminals and other policies, leading the Supreme Court to become more conservative: they established woman's right to abortion. This policy specifically affected Protestant Mainline churches of the time that had trouble with dealing with the policy. As a result, Evangelist churches increased and gained popularity because of their being influenced by their followers social and political changes. Nixon also created changes in education. His visit to cambodia sparkec a demonstration a week after the Kent State massacre protesting the shooting that had occured there. Nixon's involvement in the Watergate scandal influenced the economy. Illegal searches and wiretapping revealed government action against the law, leading to Nixon's resignation due to impeachment charges.

 

His resignation came at the worst time: the Vietnam War continued while the U.S. economy struggled from inflation, high energy and gas prices, and rising unemployment. This resulted in a slowing of the stock market. The Watergate scandal and the Vietnam War also influenced the ideals of print culture in the 1970s. When the Pentagon Papers where being published despite the fact that Nixon was trying to hide them from the public, he was disgraced by American news media. This led to a need for diversity of editorial viewpoints and a need for being open to public opinion, giving power to the people. Going against Vietnam lead to going against mainstream art.

 

 

Works Cited

"Clothes and Men's and Ladies Fashions in the 1970's Prices and Examples." Where People, History and Memories Join Together from The People History Site. Web. 02 June 2010. <http://www.thepeoplehistory.com/70sclothes.html>.