Civil Rights Movement In The 1960s

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Every culture uses music to express their beliefs or feelings. From the early days of slavery, to recent pop culture, hip hop, rock, jazz or techno, music has shaped Americans into what we are today. Music not only gives artists an avenue to express their beliefs, it also gives the listener the feeling that there are people in the world that has the same feelings that they have. Not all music has a meaning or a message. Some music is just that, music; beats of a drum, strums of a guitar, electronic collaborations to make a melody, with no real message. Whether it is political, cultural, social, or just for the sake of music, artists have the means to express what they feel, and the popular ones have an audience. The 1960s saw an explosion…show more content…
Up until the 1960s, the African American population of the United States was widely discriminated against. They were treated as subordinates to whites in any and all situations . One could say they were seen as sub-human. The fight for civil rights for African Americans in the United States dates back to before the 20th century, however the movement gained immense momentum in the 1960s. Prominent leaders such as Dr. Martin Luther King Jr. and Malcolm X were able to reach out to people across the country and spread the messages of equality to the masses. The civil rights movement not only benefited from having prominent figures as leaders, but the music of the 1960s also strengthened the push for civil rights greatly . The African American population of America in the 1960s were religious in the vast majority. Similar to the young generation of Americans with the Vietnam War, the African American community, mainly of southern states, would gather and protest (both peacefully and violently) against the both legal and cultural oppression and scrutiny their people suffered from in their daily lives. Because of the mainly religious orientation of the community, many of these gatherings took place in churches where many gospels and sermons would spread the message of peace and cooperation among the races that the civil rights movement was all about . The…show more content…
The Cold War was a semi-century long period of extreme tension between many major countries of the world during the 20th century. The most major and well-known political conflict was the conflict between the United States and the United Soviet Socialist Republics. The conflict was heightened in the 1960s with an arms race and the threat of thermonuclear war. The threat of nuclear war was taken seriously to the point that the government chose to inform people of what to do in the case of a nuclear attack from the United Soviet Socialist Republics. This mass hysteria and constant watchfulness and worry by the American people greatly affected the popular culture of America at the time. Any music or movies or any other media that showed any hint of endorsement of the Soviet ideals or disdain towards America would be quickly suppressed by the United States government and its surrounding bodies. This gave way to many artists and filmmakers expressing a theme of nationalism and patriotism. Some songs of the time focused also on the threat of nuclear war, or the grim state of foreign affairs at the time. A particular artist who had a widespread influence at the time was Bob Dylan. He was a widely respected artist in the South and countrywide a prominent figure. Other prominent artists of the time who wrote about the Cold War and its surrounding events were Simon & Garfunkel, and Joan Baez.
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