Post on 08-May-2015
America in the 1970s
Mukti Patel
Stephanie Gnewuch
Alicia Shiue
Sebastian Kahlstatt
Buisness and Economy
Worst economic time since Great Depression inflation and unemployment increased exports plummeted, imports soared
Productivity of GM, Ford, Chrysler, AMC went down by over 1 million vehicles
Foreign cars were cheaper and smaller when gas was expensive
New companies still emerged Apple – 1976 Nike – 1970
Education
Positive Aspects Overcoming social barriers
more minority students attending formerly all-white schools - greater access to higher education
More women began attending schools for higher education
Negative Aspects Decline in performance of students on standardized tests Decline in number of enrollments after 28 consecutive years of
increase in enrollments
Fashion
Popular fashions for women Miniskirts and very short shorts Ralph Lauren created his 1st design for women – version of
men’s cotton shirt Body tattoos
Popular fashions for men Muscle t-shirt Cotton shirts – tight fitting
Men and Women Preferred unisex look Long, shaggy hair
Film and Theater film industry thrived
more complicated, violent, or frightening stories that normal television could not.
style and mood more realistic tone than films from earlier eras to reflect the
gritty reality of American life.
time when black and women performers gained more roles in film
theater declined Productions including "A Chorus Line," "Annie," and "The
Elephant Man" became major hits in the late 1970s, ending the theater crisis of the 1970s.
Medicine & Health
•The medical and health industries grew rapid
•Technological advances - CAT scan and MRIs
•many Americans still did not have access to health care
•the Supreme Court ruled in 1973 - decision to have an abortion is between a woman and her doctor in the first three months of pregnancy.
•To stop the rising healthcare costs, the federal government developed health plans called health maintenance organizations (HMOs).
•Drug abuse and venereal diseases (STDs) rose while
•AIDS also made its first documented appearance
Print and Media CultureAll forms of Media (Magazines, Newspapers, Comic Books, Television, AM and FM radio, etc.) diversified to appeal to more specific audiences.
Political Scandals such as the Watergate Trials were widely publicized and greatly affected public opinion.
MUSIC
music is oriented against war and violence Disco and Punk were developed in the New York
Underground Punk bands let everyone hear their political
feelings the low expectations were opposed by the 1970’s
booming artists
Sports
Basketball, Football, Baseball, Boxing, Racing, Tennis and Golf brought in the sports entertainment money
Toward the end of the 70’s top athletes demanded as much as $1 Million a year
American people distracted themselves with sports from the major problems in the world
“The Way We lived”
Homosexuals, women, native Americans, elderly and other minorities, received more freedom
The important people, Malcolm X, John F. Kennedy, Martin Luther King Jr. and Robert F. Kennedy were assassinated
The baby boomers were growing to adults and had huge influence on the whole country, and their tastes and fads became trends of the decade
Government and Politics
Vietnam War
Triangular Diplomacy
Nixon’s Resignation
Law and JusticeWomen's Rights
Affirmative Action
Gay Rights
Desegregation of Schools and Busing
Religion
•Membership and influence of Mainline Protestant denominations declined, while membership of Evangelical denominations increased
•expressed their anger (much of it toward President Jimmy Carter) over social and cultural questions
•American Jews were disappointed with liberal Protestants and Catholics for not supporting Israel
•“By the end of the decade some conservative voters had fused their religious and political views into partisan political activism to stop the rush of cultural change and promote the political advancement of their economic and political views” (Tompkins).