8.8 Demographic Change

After World War II, the population of the United States rose sharply as a result of both natural increases and immigration. Population movements have resulted in changes to the American landscape and shifting political power. An aging population is affecting the economy and straining public resources

After World War II, the United States experienced various shifts in population and demographics that resulted in social, political, and economic consequences.

• Students will explore the short-term and long-term impacts of the baby boom generation on the economy, including increases in the construction of homes and schools and increased demands on both Social Security and health care. • Students will examine the impacts of suburbanization, including urban decay, suburban growth, and diminished availability of farmland both nationally and within New York State. • Students will examine the population shift from the Midwest and northern industrial states to the Sun Belt, including its effect on political power

Before The Baby Boomers

The two generations before the baby boomers are important to talk about to understand how we got to where we are.

Those two generations are : 1. The GI Generation (The greatest Generation) 2. The Silent Generation

The GI Generation

• • • •

born from 1900-1925. grew up with the growth of America hard work and the hope of the American Dream. had to suffer through Great Depression

• "The Greatest Generation" is a term coined by journalist Tom Brokaw • these men and women fought not for fame and recognition, but because it was the right thing to do. • When they came back they rebuilt America into a superpower."

Silent Generation

• born from 1925-1942 • grew up under the shadow of Depression & WW2 • Baby Boom!

Baby Boom Generation

• born from 1946-1964 • Associated with a rejection or redefinition of traditional values • wealthiest, most active, and most physically fit generation up to that time • amongst the first to grow up genuinely expecting the world to improve with time • increased consumerism for this generation has been regularly criticized as excessive • tended to think of themselves as a special generation

THE BABY BOOM • During the late 1940s and through the early 1960s the birthrate in the U.S. soared • At its height in 1957, a baby was born in America every 7 seconds (over 4.3 million babies in ’57 alone) • Baby boomers represent the largest generation in the nation’s history

What are the official years of the Baby Boom Generation?

1946 - 1964 saw a marked increase in the

How did the birthrate rise and fall during the baby boom years in the US?

1940

2,559,000 births per year

1946

3,311,000 births per year

1955

4,097,000 births per year

1957

4,300,000 births per year

1964

4,027,000 births per year

number of births in North America.

1974 3,160,000 births per year

WHY SO MANY BABIES?

Why did the baby boom occur when it did? – – – – –

Husbands returning from war Decreasing marriage age Desirability of large families Confidence in economy Advances in medicine

Bringing up the Boomers!  After WWII = great prosperity in North America  changed the way babies were delivered & nurtured  changed the way the family functioned

Suburban Culture • rapid growth of the baby boom era -> a new suburban culture • Demand for housing -> tremendous construction boom – “suburbia”

• Entire neighborhoods were constructed quickly – “pre-fab” – Levittown, NY

• For some – owning a suburban home completed the security triangle – marriage, baby, house. • Each suburban house was built with a driveway – making cars a necessity for most families

Suburban Car-Culture Fast-food restaurants, shopping plazas, and the now-obsolete drive-in movie theatres

Child-Centered Universe • 2 age groups dominated the post-war suburbs – children under 15 – young adults 25-44

• No “teenagers” yet, • “nuclear family” – 2 parents + young children

Boomers’ upbringing compared to previous generations

• 4/5 delivered in the hospital • compared to only one out of 5 of their parents. • For late boomers, the ratio of hospitalborn babies increased to 9 out of 10. – lowered infant mortality rate.

• Baby formula • small prepared bottles of baby food • replaced the breast-feeding & mashed “adult food” of the previous generation. • commercial foods for babies and toddlers advertised as the “modern” way to bring up happy, healthy babies

 Some parents consulted books written by child-care specialists  Dr. Benjamin Spock  advice on raising children,  instead of relying on the advice of relatives and friends  Parents often raised children more permissively than their parents.

DR. SPOCK ADVISES PARENTS • Many parents raised their children according to the guidelines of pediatrician Dr. Benjamin Spock • He thought children should be allowed to express themselves and parents should never physically punish their kids

• Popular TV programs • i.e., Leave it to Beaver • presented a stereotypical view of the happy, suburban, fatherled family of the 1950s.

Boomers go to School

 sudden increase in population increase pressure on public institutions.  Ex - New hospitals, delivery rooms, & nursery wards  first wave  boom in the building of elementary schools, then secondary schools and finally universities.

• Learning was also very different • Previously: – – – –

teacher-controlled authoritarian education master a standard program 3-R’s (reading writing & arithmetic). strict code of behavior

• • • •

1950s “Progressive” Education John Dewey child-centered and teacher training emphasized that students were naturally eager to learn.

The 1960’s Counterculture

A SUBCULTURE EMERGES • mass media and television wildly popular in the 1950s • dissenting voices – “Beat Movement” in literature – rock n’ roll in music

BEATNIKS FOLLOW OWN PATH • San Francisco, L.A. and New York’s Greenwich Village, • Beat Movement =social nonconformity • “beatniks” – shun work – understanding through Zen Buddhism, music, and sometimes drugs

Beatniks often performed poetry or music in coffeehouses or bars

• Mid to late 60’s, the front wave of boomers hit late teenage years, and became very visible and vocal. • Many adults considered them to be rude & loud

During the 60s…

 1/2 of the population were not yet legally adults  They were strongly influenced by television and music  They were fully aware of events in the US

Woodstock  1969, 5 millions gathered in Upstate New York to be part of Woodstock  Music focused on protest & rebellion against authority, and the Vietnam war in particular.

 Even though promiscuity & drug used increased, it was still only the minority  They were adventurous, but still conventional  More were positively involved in political activism, rights of women and rights of Aboriginal People

WHAT IT WILL MEAN TO YOU

Your generation will be supporting an increasingly aging American population

ADVANCES IN MEDICINE AND CHILDCARE Advances in the treatment of childhood diseases included drugs to combat typhoid fever and polio (Jonas Salk)

Dr. Salk was instrumental in the eradication of polio

IMPACT OF BABY BOOM • As a result of the baby boom 10 million students entered elementary schools in the 1950s • California built a new school every 7 days in the late ’50s • Toy sales reached an alltime high in 1958 when $1.25 billion in toys were sold

Symbols of the Baby Boom in Suburbia

1950

1960

Hot Dog Production (millions of lbs)

750

1050

Potato Chip Production (millions of lbs)

320

532

Sales of lawn and porch furniture (millions of dollars)

53.6

145.2

Sales of power mowers (millions of dollars)

1.0

3.8

Sales of floor polishers (millions of dollars)

0.24

1.0

Sales of Encyclopaedia (millions of dollars)

72

300

Number of Children age 5-14

24.3

35.5

Number of baseball Little Leagues

776

5,700

Fads of the Baby Boomers

Hula Hoops Frozen Foods Poodle Skirts and Saddle Shoes Panty Raids Barbie and GI Joe Dolls

Bikinis Frisbees

What celebrity deaths have most affected the Baby Boomers?

John F. Kennedy

Marilyn Monroe

Martin Luther King

Yo-yos Ouija Boards Dune Buggies

John Lennon

THE AUTOMOBILE CULTURE

• After the rationing of WWII, inexpensive and plentiful fuel and easy credit led many to buy cars • By 1960, over 60 million Americans owned autos

INTERSTATE HIGHWAY ACT 1956 In 1956 Ike authorized a nationwide highway network – 41,000 miles of road linking America

THE INTERSTATE HIGHWAY SYSTEM “Automania” spurred the construction of roads linking major cities while connecting schools, shopping centers and workplaces to residential suburbs

IMPACT OF THE HIGHWAY The Interstate Highway system resulted in: – More trucking – Less railroad – More suburbs, further away

HIGHWAYS “HOMOGENIZE” AMERICA • Another effect of the highway system was that the scenery of America began to look the same • Restaurants, motels, highway billboards, gas stations, etc. all began to look similar • The nation had become “homogenized”

Anytown, USA

DOWNSIDE TO MOBILITY While the car industry boom stimulated production, jobs, shopping centers, and the restaurant industry, it also had negative effects – – – – – –

Noise Pollution Accidents Traffic Jams Stress Decline of public transportation

RISE OF CONSUMERISM • By the mid-1950s, nearly 60% of Americans were members of the middle class • Consumerism (buying material goods) came to be equated with success and status

NEW PRODUCTS • One new product after another appeared in the marketplace • Appliances, electronics, and other household goods were especially popular • The first credit card (Diner’s Club) appeared in 1950 and American Express was introduced in 1958 • Personal debt increased nearly 3x in the 1950s

THE ADVERTISING AGE • The advertising industry capitalized on runaway consumerism by encouraging more spending • Ads were everywhere • Ad agencies increased their spending 50% during the 1950s

WHITE FLIGHT • In the 1950s, millions of middle-class white Americans left the cities for the suburbs • At the same time millions of African American rural poor migrated to the cities • The so-called “White Flight” drained cities of valuable resources, money and taxes

Immigration

The postwar United States experienced increasing immigration, debates over immigration policy, and an increase in cultural diversity.

• Students will examine migration and immigration trends in New York State and New York City such as the increase in Spanishspeaking, South Asian, East Asian, Middle Eastern, and African populations and the contributions of these groups. • Students will examine the debates over and the effects of immigration legislation, including recent debates over immigration policy.

Immigration to the United States

Immigration • US has most open policy in world • 1875 – Supreme Court puts immigration in hands of federal gov’t • 1880s = waves of immigrants • 1893 – Ellis Is. Opens • 1900-1920 “Great Wave” • 1921 and 1924 Quota acts • Restrict numbers to respective proportion each group in census

Immigration

• 1930s-40s = little immigration, sometimes zero • Bracero Program • 1930s-40s • Farm labor • Mexican

Immigration 1965 Immigration Act • Civil rights era • Quotas from 1920s seen as discriminatory • New policy priorities 1. Reunite families 2. Attract skilled labor • HUGE change in US population • 4x More Asians and Latin Americans • 3x more immigration from ’65-’95 compared to ‘35-’65

Immigration

1986 Immigration Reform Act • Improve enforcement • Increase possible ways to enter the country • “amnesty” • Four amnesty acts passed through the ’90s

Immigration 1990 Immigration Act • Increase number allowed in • Increase visas by 40% • Reuniting families • “Jordan Commission” • How is it going? • Funding limited effective implement of suggestions

Immigration

1996 Illegal Immigrant Reform and Immigrant Responsibility Act (IIRIRA) • Stronger enforcement • Stronger punishments • Poorly funded

Immigration

September 11 reveals weaknesses • Hijackers were on visas • 2002 Homeland Security Act • Puts immigration now in Homeland Security • Too much disagreement over right way to go on immigration • Bills fail to get passed in ‘06 and’07

Pollution, population growth, the consumption of natural resources, clearing of land for human sustenance, and large-scale industrialization have put added stress on the global environment.

Students will explore the impact of pollution, industrialization and population growth on the environment such as urban areas (Love Canal), plant and animal life (Adirondack Park) and energy sources (Three Mile Island).

Research Paper to Conclude Topic 8.8 • MLA format paper and citations • Recommend using template like last time… • Research notes required • Cite source, evaluate source using rubric, take notes • Class time for this…

Choose any ONE of the following and explore the impact of pollution, industrialization and population growth: • Love Canal • Adirondack Park • Three Mile Island