America in the 50’s

United States in the 1950s

The United States in the 1950s experienced marked economic growth – with an
increase in manufacturing and home construction amongst a post–World War II
economic expansion.

The Cold War and its associated conflicts helped create a politically conservative
climate in the country, as the quasi-confrontation intensified throughout the entire
decade. Fear of communism caused public Congressional hearings in both
houses of Congress while anti-communism was the prevailing sentiment in the
United States throughout the period. Conformity and conservatism characterized
the social norms of the time. Accordingly, the 1950s in the United States are
generally considered both socially conservative and highly materialistic in nature.
Capitalism and consumerism

There was a large-scale expansion of the middle class in the

1950s. Unions were strong, comprising almost half the American
workforce. Politics tended to be moderate, with extremist positions
being out of favor.
The need to always have more and better goods emerged rapidly
in the West during the 1950s. Consumerism became a key
component of Western society. People bought big houses in the
new suburbs and bought new time-saving household appliances.
This buying trend was influenced by many American cultural and
economic aspects such as advertising; television; cars; new
offerings from banks (loans and credit); immediately being able to
have what one wanted; and achieving a perceived better life.
Cars

Automobiles became much more available, after the low

production runs in the Depression, followed by the
mortarium on production during the Second World War,
when factories produced Jeeps and other military transport
vehicles instead of cars. Styles became flashier. Boxy and
conservative in the first half of the decade, they became
lower, longer, wider, and sleeker. Tail fins, chrome, and
multicolor paint jobs characterized the late 1950s.

The 1950s was also the decade when the popular sport
Formula One started.
Civil Rights Movement

The civil rights movement began in earnest, with the

landmark Supreme Court ruling of Brown vs. the Board of
Education in 1954. In the early 1950s the 1954 Brown v.
Board of Education ruling by the Supreme Court of the
United States opened the door to the beginnings of the right
for all Americans to an equal and fair education regardless
of race, creed or religion. During this time, racial segregation
was still present in the U.S. and other countries. The Civil
Rights Movement of the 1960s would soon begin. Key
figures like Martin Luther King, Jr., Malcolm X and Rosa
Parks highlighted and challenged those who were against
equal rights and freedoms for black Americans. In 1957, the
Little Rock Nine integrated the Central High School, which
was a key event in the fight to end segregation in schools
and other public places in the U.S.
Art movements

Visual arts movements:

- Abstract expressionism

Literature:
- the Beat movement

Music trends:

- Popular music and Country music;

- Jazz;

- Rock-n-Roll and Electric blues

short film:

- Plutopia