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Civil Rights Act/ Movements
On September 9th, 1957, President Eisenhower signed the Civil Rights Act of 1957 into law. Although black people were legally able to vote at the time, Southern states were trying to make it harder for them to. They would give literacy tests that were very hard to pass before voting, to keep them from it. This law allowed the prosecution of anybody trying to prevent anyone from voting, so they could no longer do this. This law was a huge step in the right direction for the Civil Rights Movement. -
U.S Involved In Vietnam War
In 1960, The United States Army announced that they would be sending 3,500 American soldiers into war at Vietnam. This was just the beginning of a war that continued until 1973 when the US pulled out, with a North Vietnam victory. -
To Kill a Mockingbird
On July 11th, 1960, the great American novel 'To Kill a Mockingbird' was published by Harper Lee. This book spoke on prejudices and inequality at the time, and the book is still read by most schools in America with a huge impact on our society today. -
John F. Kennedy
On November 8th, 1960, John F. Kennedy was elected as the 35th president of the United States. He won the election against his opponent Richard Nixon. He served as president from 1960-1963 when he was assassinated. -
Peace Corps Established
On March 1st, 1961, President John F. Kennedy established an American group with the State Department called the "Peace Corps". This group's job was to deploy around the world to developing countries as helpful volunteers. They would promote democracy, freedom, and American peace. -
The First Man in Space
On April 12th, 1961, the Soviet Union launched Yuri Alekseyevich Gagarin into space, and he became famous as the first man to ever go into space. On May 5th, 1961, Alan Shepard was flown into space and became the first person in the United States to go to space. -
The Beatles
In 1962 Ringo Starr was the last member to join the Beatles, and the group was now complete. The Beatles were very popular around this time period, and are still looked up to for inspiration in the present day. Around 1964, The Beatles were at their most popular with a craze referred to as "Beatlemania". About 70 million Americans (34% of the US's population) viewed their first live TV performance. -
Introduction of Zip Codes
In July of 1963, zip codes were implemented in the US for the first time ever. The name "ZIP" stood for Zoning Improvement Plan", and was created by the US Postal Service attempting to make a more efficient way to deliver mail. -
John F. Kennedy's Assassination
On November 11th, 1963, President John F. Kennedy was assassinated. While he was campaigning for his next election in Texas, he was shot and killed in his car. This had shook the nation because he was a very liked politician at the time. -
The Civil Rights Act of 1964
On July 2nd, 1964, President Johnson signed the Civil Rights Act of 1964 into law. This law made it illegal to discriminate against someone based on their sex, race, religion, color of their skin, or national origin. It also made segregation in public illegal. This was one of the most important laws during the Civil Rights Movement, because there was now no legal way to discriminate against anyone else in public. -
Dr. Martin Luther King Jr, Civil Rights March
In March of 1965, Martin Luther King Jr. lead a Civil Rights March in Alabama from Selma to Montgomery. This was a peaceful march and protest, they were pushing for the civil rights of African-Americans and their voting rights. By August, their protest was proven to be successful when the Voting Rights Act of 1965 was signed in to law. -
The First Super Bowl
In January of 1967, The first NFL Super Bowl was played. This was when football just started to get popular, yet the first Super Bowl was not even sold out. The first winners of the first two Super Bowls were the Green Bay Packers. -
Interracial Marriage
In 1967, the United States Supreme Court declared interracial marriage as constitutional in the "Loving vs Virginia" case. This was a huge step forward in equal rights, because before this case, white people and people of color were not allowed by law to get married. -
Ratification of the 25th Amendment
On February 10th, 1967, the 25th amendment was ratified. The 25th amendment talked about if a president were to die while in office, the vice president would take over as president for the rest of his term. -
The Feminist Revolution
The goals of the Feminist Revolution were to obtain equality in the workplace, and be treated as socially equal altogether. Women had been denied access to better jobs and equal salaries to men, and they were fighting back. Around this time period there had been many protests and rebelling, led by powerful women leaders who were fighting for their own equality. -
The Apollo 11 Launch
On July 20th, 1969, Neil Armstrong reached his goal and was officially the first human to ever step foot on the moon. The Apollo 8 and 9 missions proved that it was possible to send someone to the moon and back, and after many tests, they finally succeeded.