The 1950s

America in the 1950s had become a consumer society. People were buying and selling things more than ever. Much of what the 1950s was like is similar to how we view the American Dream today. Ninety seven percent of marriageable men and women were married, causing people to often describe the 1950s as a "couples society." A quarter of Americans moved into suburbs. A whole suburb community would be built at one time and all the houses would look the same."Rock n' roll" music became popular in the 1950s with the youth population. However, many parents thought that the music was to vulgar and a euphemism for sex. In the 1950s, more people also were able to afford televisions. This became a key part of life in the 1950s and shaped the entire time period. People across the country could watch the same shows and news. Gathering and watching shows together became a popular way of socializing. The Civil Rights movement was greatly affected by the use of the television, as the technology help spread the message of desegregation and no discrimination across the country. Rosa Parks refused to give up her seat on the bus to a white man on December 1, 1955. Shortly after the black community organized a peaceful boycott of the buses. The boycott lasted over a year, but eventually lead to desegregation on buses. The Brown vs Board for Education case results were tested when black students were prevented from entering their school in Arkansas. However, Eisenhower intervenes and showed that states could not disobey federal laws. The cold war also began in the 1950s. When the Soviet Union launched Sputnik Americans felt they were behind and not working hard enough to be educated. Americans hard work to change what they thought of as lack of education lead to the space race. Overall, the 1950s was a relatively good time for America were social change started to begin.