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U.S. History II - From Nixon to Carter, 1968–1980

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    Study Guide U.S. History II – From Nixon to Carter, 1968 – 1980 1. America in the 1970s • The activism of the 1960s carried into the 1970s, including efforts by women and minorities. • Environmentalism gained attention: o Earth Day first celebrated in 1970 o Activists succeeded in stopping SST (Supersonic Transport) planes due to noise and ozone concerns o They could not stop the Trans - Alaska Pipeline in 1973 1.1 The Women’s Movement • Organizations like NOW and the National Women’s Political Caucus fought for equality. • Equal Rights Amendment (ERA) passed Congress in 1972 but failed ratification due to opposition. • Roe v. Wade (1973): Supreme Court legalized abortion in the first trimester; led to the rise of the Right - to - Life movement . • Economic inequality persisted: o Women faced a “glass ceiling” in corporate jobs o Gender - neutral job titles became common: policemen → police officers, stewardesses → flight attendants 1.2 Civil Rights and Minorities • Jim Crow laws ended , but inequality persisted , especially in the urban North. • Busing to integrate schools caused controversy; Supreme Court limited forced busing in 1974. • Affirmative action sought to remedy past discrimination: o Critics called it reverse discrimination o 1978 Supreme Court ruled numerical quotas illegal , but race could factor in college admissions

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    Study Guide Key Minority Achievements • Mexican - Americans: United Farm Workers won collective bargaining rights in 1975 ; La Raza Unida party promoted political candidates • Native Americans: o Occupied Wounded Knee (1973) to demand rights o Indian Self - Determination Act (1974) gave tribes control over federal programs o Tribes increasingly used legal action to secure treaty rights 1.3 Demographic Changes • Population growth slowed; the baby boom ended • Divorce and “nonfamily households” increased • The U.S. population aged , and retirement age rose from 65 → 70 • Population shifted geographically: o Rust Belt (industrial East and Midwest) stagnated o Sun Belt (Florida, Texas, Southwest, California) grew Immigration Changes • Immigration Act of 1965 ended discriminatory national - origins quotas • More immigrants came from Asia and Latin America • Fall of South Vietnam created a refugee wave (≈500,000) • Economic opportunity drove legal and illegal immigration, especially from Mexico and Central/South America 1.4 Big Picture The 1970s were a period of social progress and demographic change , but also economic and political challenges : • Activism continued but faced limits (environment, women’s rights, minorities) • Demographics shifted due to aging population, regional migration, and immigration • Many gains of the 1960s were consolidated, but some battles, like ERA ratification and school integration , remained unresolved

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    Study Guide 2. The Nixon Presidency The Nixon Presidency (1969 – 1974) — Summary and Key Points Richard Nixon’s presidency is remembered for foreign policy achievements , domestic challenges , and the Watergate scandal , which ultimately ended his presidency. 2.1 Election of 1968 • President Lyndon Johnson announced he would not seek re - election. • Democratic candidates included Hubert Humphrey and Robert Kennedy ; Kennedy was assassinated in June 1968. • Republican candidate Richard Nixon promised law and order and a “secret plan” to end the Vietnam War. • George Wallace , running on the American Independent Party ticket, appealed to conservatives frustrated with the counterculture and the war. • Results: o Nixon narrowly won the popular vote but decisively won the Electoral College (301 – 191) o Wallace carried five Southern states o Democrats kept control of Congress 2.2 Vietnam and “Vietnamization” Nixon’s approach to Vietnam included: • Vietnamization : gradually transferring combat responsibility to South Vietnam while withdrawing U.S. troops • Intensified bombing of North Vietnam and expanded operations into Cambodia (1969 – 1970) • U.S. forces dropped from 500,000 to 30,000 by 1972 • Paris Peace Accords (January 1973) ended U.S. involvement • Final outcome: Fall of Saigon (1975) ; Vietnam unified under northern control • U.S. cost: 58,000 lives and $150 billion

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