1950 Dbq Analysis

Many people believe that the 1950's was a time of growth for American society, because of its new technologies, spread of housing and people, and the decrease of prices to a more affordable level. When soldiers returned from fighting they were able to go to college because of the money granted to them from the GI Bill of Rights. The returning soldiers also began getting married and starting families which led to a Baby Boom throughout the time period. New technologies helped to successfully land a man on the moon in 1969. However the prosperity of the 1950's did not apply to everyone. Women took a step back after a shift in gender roles pushed women to get married, take care of the house, and watch over the children. African Americans and …show more content…
The returning African American soldiers were granted the same privileges as the white soldiers, which included the monthly pay (Document G). African Americans could not use their money to go to college like many of the other returning war veterans, because of discrimination. Schools were segregated by race, which prevented the African American soldiers from spending their money that way. People justified segregating schools and other facilities as separate but equal, which was the court decision in Plessy v. Ferguson. Later that was changed in the Supreme Court case Brown v. Board of Education of Topeka, Kansas. It decided that separate educational facilities are inherently unequal (Document E). Although education eventually became desegregated African Americans were still facing discrimination in other industries. During the 1950's, teenagers liked the upbeat and easy to dance to style of music sung by African American singers, but they did not want to choose a black singer over a white one. The race records of African Americans were often taken and resold with a white singer without the original writer getting any credit or any royalties to them. Elvis came in and was able to recreate the soulful R&B style of African American singers (Document J). Many families at the time were moving to Levittown because they were affordable and everyone was getting them (Document D). …show more content…
Many people did not enjoy the wealth and prosperity of the 1950's. The poor were ignored and given no help, even though there were millions of them. African Americans faced discrimination and segregation through multiple fronts. Many could not live in the suburbs because of the acceptance of segregation, and African American musicians did not receive the credit for many songs taken by white musicians. Although the wealth was not equal, almost every American feared the threat of a nuclear attack and families became closed off which led to the name nuclear families. The 1950's may be remembered for its prosperity, but overall everyone in the society was not

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