The 1960's Movement

The 1960’s movement that consisted of presidential reform agendas and Supreme Court rulings is known as liberalism (Keene, 812). President Kennedy and Johnson were responsible for the creation of the Liberal Movement. They had views that were similar to Roosevelt’s and believed themselves to be heirs of the New Deal (Keene, 812). These two presidents focused on “desegregating the American military and securing federal funds for urban housing, education, and public works projects” (Keene, 812). Kennedy and Johnson supported the idea that the power of the federal government could be used to reform American society, but conservatives objected (Keene, 812). Liberalism led to Kennedy’s New Frontier, the Liberal Court, and the Great Society. Michael Harrington made the nation aware of poverty through his book called The Other America: Poverty in the United States (Keene,
The 1964 Election was significant because Johnson had “won the election with over 61 percent of the popular vote, the largest percentage in American history” (Keene, 817). Johnson had taken office after Kennedy was assassinated. He did not get off to a great start because he supported federal civil rights legislation. This cost him Southern votes and Northern Democrats because they were segregationists (Keene, 814). Johnson redeemed himself by using the federal government to “combat pollution, support the arts, and plant trees and flowers along the nation’s highways” (Keene, 816). Barry Goldwater was Johnson’s opponent, but his conservative views alarmed society. Goldwater was seen as someone “who might lead the nation into nuclear war”, so he lost the election (Keene, 816). Johnson’s Great Society worked to improve the educational system, provide health care for the disadvantaged, and relieve struggling cities (Keene, 817). The Great Society also gave immigrants opportunities to thrive and protected the