Turning Points in American History

Paper Summary:

The paper discusses the 1950s "Brown v. Board of Education" that initiated the Civil Rights movement and helped end centuries of racial oppression in America. The paper then turns to the 1969 moon landing that proved American military and technological prowess and ushered in a new era of military and scientific advancements and the 1970s female sexual liberation where "Roe v. Wade" enhanced women's rights, allowing all American women to choose whether or not to become mothers. The paper also looks at the 1980s, the AIDS epidemic. and the changing perspective on homosexuality and the 1990's Iraqi invasion of Kuwait that kick-started the first Gulf War and paved the way for the second one. The paper notes the fall of the dollar and the rise of Asia and concludes with the assertion that the American Empire may be coming to a close.

Outline:
Introduction
The 1950s: The End of Legal Segregation
The 1960s: Man on the Moon
The 1970s: Female Sexual Liberation
The 1980s: AIDS
The 1990s: The First Gulf War
Conclusion

From the Paper:

"Singular events can have profound impacts on the course of history: the terrorist attacks of September 11, 2001 proved as much. After the Second World War, the United States underwent tremendous economic and social transformations. Many of the changes that took place in American culture during the latter half of the twentieth century can be traced directly to one political, social, or fiscal event such as a scientific invention or a declaration of war. Events that serve as historical turning points are usually both causes and effects. Turning points in history represent the culmination of what transpired before and their repercussions reverberate throughout succeeding generations."

Sample of Sources Used:

• "About the Case." Brown v. Board of Education. Brown Foundation for Educational Equity, Excellence and Research. Retrieved Jun 14, 2008 from http://brownvboard.org/summary/
• Cozzens, L. (1995). Brown v. Board of Education. Early Civil Rights Struggles. Retrieved online Jun 14, 2008 from http://www.watson.org/~lisa/blackhistory/early-civilrights/brown.html
• Garber, S. (2007). Sputnik and The Dawn of the Space Age. NASA. Retrieved Oct 10, 2007 from http://history.nasa.gov/sputnik/
• "The Space Race." Newseum. Retrieved Jun 14, 2008 from http://www.newseum.org/cybernewseum/exhibits/dateline_moon/space.htm
• "Roe v. Wade." Touro Law Center. Retrieved Jun 14, 2008 from http://www.tourolaw.edu/Patch/Roe/

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