The fear of Communism that occupies many Americans during the 50s is an outgrowth of the events that led to the end of WW II and the development of the Cold War. The Civil Rights movement is a continuation of the long struggle of African Americans to achieve equality in American society, energized by renewed intolerance during the 1950s. This unit begins with an investigation of our involvement in Vietnam. We look at the conflict and, as we did with WW II, evaluate how we can determine responsibility. And Beyond . . .
American society has and continues to undergo terrific change at increasingly rapid rates.
Many historical events and social trends have developed over the past 30-35 years along side the Civil Rights Movement and America's involvement with Vietnam. The remainder of the course is devoted to a brief look, decade by decade, at the 1960s, 1970s and 1980s. In research and presentation teams, students will create the class's retrospective of the last 3 decades. As a whole class, we anticipate what the critical events and trends might be as the next century begins. Selected works of art and music are used, art mostly in the 19th century and music mostly in the 20th.