Causes and Results of Postwar Social Conflicts, Essay Example

Postwar America (between 1945 and 1968) was quite prosperous as the American society became even more affluent than before the war building on the base (economic) that was left after war. This economic boom coupled with unparalleled prosperity raised the expectations of Americans that most of their social as well as economic problems could be solved[1].

Despite the prosperity witnessed, not all Americans were equal participants or partakers of the expanding opportunities in life and in the economic prosperity. The true picture of the United States of America in the post-World War 2 era was a time of calls for creative, dynamic change and intense anxiety. In the postwar era, there were social conflicts such as struggle for equality occasioned among minorities and women. These were because of what was seen as unequal distribution of the economic resources in the boom after the war. In the 1950s, the African American community heightened the struggle for equal rights through the judiciary system challenging acts of segregation[2]. There was rise of maverick sociologists, poets, writers, social critics, and reformists (both liberals and conservatives) that provided crucial critiques of the American society.

These economic and social struggles led to the growth of suburbs and ghettos. African Americans used freedom rides, protest marches, and sit-ins to fight unemployment, segregation, and poverty. The other social issue was of feminists demanding end to discrimination sexually and equal job opportunities[3]. Native Americans demanded recognition of their land claims and right to govern themselves. Mexican Americans also protested discrimination in employment, education, and voting. There were demands from environmentalists for legislation to limit the volume of pollution being released into the environment.

Bibliography

Florida, Richard and Andrew Jonas. “US urban policy: the postwar state and capitalist regulation.” Antipode 23, no. 4 (2001): 349–384

Kusmer, Kenneth L and Joe William Trotter. African American urban history since World War II. Chicago: The University of Chicago Press, 2009

[1] Florida, Richard and Andrew Jonas. “US urban policy: the postwar state and capitalist regulation.” Antipode 23, no. 4 (2001): 349–384

[2] Florida, Richard and Andrew Jonas. “US urban policy: the postwar state and capitalist regulation.” Antipode 23, no. 4 (2001): 349–384

[3] Kusmer, Kenneth L and Joe William Trotter. African American urban history since World War II. Chicago: The University of Chicago Press, 2009