The Movements Take Off, 1960–1965

Abstract

The first half of the 1960s is sometimes referred to nostalgically as the “good sixties,” a time of idealism before the polarization of the late 1960s. Certainly, it was a period of prosperity and confidence in government, symbolized by the youthful administration of President John F. Kennedy and the can-do Great Society proclaimed by his successor, Lyndon Johnson. The nation made major strides to overcome deeply rooted injustices, and the movements of the New Left, in alliance with liberals in the Democratic Party, played a central role.