The Darker Side of the 1950s

23.3

Not Everyone Was Fortunate

• As we have discussed, the 1950s was a time of incredible abundance for many U.S. citizens

• However, not everyone experienced the new wealth and standard of living in this new era

• 20% of Americans (30 million people) lived below the poverty line during this time– Poverty line: the minimum income to support a

family

Groups/Areas Hit the Hardest

• African Americans• Hispanics• Native Americans • Appalachia

African Americans• During the Great

Migration, African Americans from the South to the urban areas of the North

• When WWI and WWII end, this has negative effects for these migrants– Job insecurity,

discrimination, poor housing, bad schools

• They were stuck in cities with low paying jobs– In 1958, African Americans’

salaries were 51% of what whites earned

Mexican Immigrants• Bracero Program: the U.S.

government arranged for workers from Mexico to help with harvests

• Some of these immigrants stayed in the States

• These people lived in extreme poverty– Worked long hours, labor

was intensive, low wages, poor living conditions

Native Americans

• By mid-century, Native Americans poorest ethnic group in the country

• After WWII, federal government encouraged (or forced) Native Americans to assimilate

• Termination Policy: the federal government withdrew all recognition of Native American groups as legal entities and put them under the rule of state governments

• The government provided incentives for Native Americans to move off of reservations and into cities

Appalachia

• Rural areas were hit hard, too

• Mechanization of mining and farming left these areas destitute

• People left these areas in droves

• Those who stayed faced high rates of nutritional deficiency and infant mortality, as well as terrible schools

Discussion Slide

• How could the suburbs have contributed to the forms of poverty that developed in the 1950s?

The Deterioration of the Inner City

• How did whites respond to the Great Migration?

• What reasons did whites give for leaving cities?

• What barriers were there for black Americans who wanted to own houses?

• How did these migration trends contribute to the decline of inner cities?