Causes of the Development of Thatcherism

Causes of the Development of Thatcherism Introduction Britain has for a very long time been regarded as a model stable democracy.[1] There was great economic and social progress and a remarkable increase in the living standard and a rate of near full employment in the post war years in Britain.[2] However, in the mid 1970’s a lot of factors including high inflation, low economic growth, trade union power and weak government all led to a down turn in the economy and this greatly affected the standard of living in Britain.[3] This was referred to as a crisis of social democracy by the Conservative party. The right wing called for a simultaneous restoration of government authority and reduction in the size of the public sector.[4] The economic recession and slow economic growth greatly undermined popular support for the welfare state; this in no small measure helped the Conservative party to win the general elections in 1979 and Margaret Thatcher became the British prime minister. According to Hugo Young, the election of Margaret Th atcher as the prime minister earmarked ‘the beginning of a period which could later be defined as an era, in which an ordinary politician labouring under many disadvantages, grew in to an international figure who did extra ordinary things to her country’.[5] This essay will look at Thatcherism and if it embodies a consistent body of political principles or if it was essentially an opportunistic response to events. What is Thatcherism? The term Thatcherism is very difficult to analyse. Some commentators have described it as, ‘a reasonable coherent and comprehensive concept of control for the restoration of bourgeois rule and bourgeois hegemony in the circumstances of the 1980’s†¦the restoration of the rule of the state in the economy and finally a re-ordering of the balance of power between different factions of capital in Britain’.[6] Some commentators have also described Thatcherism as an experiment by Margaret Thatcher which was naà ¯ve in social engineering, through which it hoped that the behaviour and attitudes of the unions would change and that life would then be easier for entrepreneurs in Britain.[7] Thatcherism is essentially an instinct, a sense of moral values and an approach to leadership rather than an ideology.[8] Thatcherism is the body of rules and values that are ascribed to British first female Prime Minister Margaret Thatcher. Margaret Thatcher was born on October 13 1925 in Grantham, Lincolnshire. She was born to be a politician.[9] Her lineage and formation gave her few possibilities.[10] Margaret Thatcher came from a political family that handed down the tradition of political commitment from one generation to the next.[11] She went to Oxford University in 1943 to study chemistry. In the year she went to Oxford, she immediately joined the Conservative Association, OUCA.[12] She enrolled as a part-time student at the Council for Legal Education and passed her Bar exams in December 1953. Margaret Thatcher became the leader of the Conservative party in February 1975. She was a formidable leader. She was said to always set out to guide a discussion from the front leaving the others to challenge her.[13] She made it clear from the moment she became the leader of the Conservative party, her determination to create conditions for the revival of Britain.[14] She became the prime minister in May 1979. The 1979 election produced a historic victory for the Conservative party. It was the beginning of an era in which an ordinary politician (Margaret Thatcher) labouring under many disadvantages grew in to an international figure and carried out some extra ordinary reforms in Britain.[15] Margaret Thatcher described her self as a conviction politician. She produces stronger reaction than any other British political leader in modern times. People either love her or they loath her.[16] Thatcher sought to transform Britain’s way of life. She tried to create a new spirit of self reliance and enterprise in the British people.[17] She saw her self as a strong determined leader whose aim was to allow market forces to shape the development of British industry to the widest possible extent through policies such as privatization.[18] The term neo-liberal has frequently been used to define Thatcherite politics.[19] Thatcher’s conservative policies were different to the neo-Keynesianism of the Macmillan Conservatives.[20] Theorists sometimes refer Thatcherism to the style of Mrs Margaret Thatcher’s leadership, which is a no nonsense style of leadership and hostility to premium placed on gaining agreement by consensus.[21] Thatcherism is also referred to a strong state and a government strong enough to resist the selfish claims of pressure groups, traditional moral values and a government that believes in reducing state intervention and privatization.[22] Thatcherism is also referred to the clamp down on trade union militancy and high inflation that characterised Britain in the mid 1970’s.[23] Thatcherism is not only a set of policies but also involves a set of politically effective discursive strategies.[24] It is obvious that many ideologies of Thatcherism already existed in various forms of popular common sense, however they were inchoate and it was through Thatcher’s own self –image and pronouncements that these loose set of ideologies were formed in to ‘a popular, chauvinistic and morally righteous discourse with a definite set of referents and clear political implications’.[25] Thatcherism was achieved through a subtle combination of two forms of populism.[26] The first being an antagonistic discourse calling upon the British people to mobilise against the social democratic state and the second being, a more neutral concept of a consensual and, non –antagonistic people which buries their identity and antagonisms.[27] This is coupled with the highly condensed and complex national popular identity which Thatcherism invoked and the way the ideology looked at complex economic considerations and subsumed them under simple moral ideas.[28] One of the most common interpretations, especially during the first Thatcher spell in government, is the treatment of Thatcherism as a monetarist economic experiment.[29] Many commentators have tried to find the significance of Thatcherism in its economic policies and the economic interest it serves.[30] Theorists have sought to explain Thatcherism in one of three ways. Thatcherism have been explained in relatively instrumentalist terms, through its insistence on economic interests being the corner stone of its ideology; in terms of the functional relationship between these economic policies and the ideology and interests of specific economic interests; or in terms of the autonomous propagation by the Thatcher regime of policies which happen to favour the needs of these economic interests.[31] Thatcherism in today’s political rhetoric does not refer to an approach to economic goals but rather to a right wing Conservative who questions Keynesian policies and is a supporter of the free market on other policies.[32] Thatcherism in my view does not embody a consistent political principle. It basically embodies the beliefs and policies of Margaret Thatcher on how to jump start the British economy, re-establish the power and authority of the state, dislodge the increasing influence and powers of the trade unions, cut down inflation and get people back to work. The concept Thatcherism appears to have been used loosely and applied too widely. Thatcherism appears to have no consistent set of policies and which can be used to define its nature. Thatcherism is a broad complex of ideologies whose genealogy, unity and development are far from easy to analyse.[33] Conclusion Love her or hate her, Margaret Thatcher left an indelible mark in the annuals of British politics. Many years since she left office, debate still rages on whether Thatcherism is a consistent body of political principles or was it essentially an opportunistic response to events. A lot of commentators do not believe that Thatcherism really exit but if it does, then perhaps only as a misleading term of political discourse.[34] Paul Hirst wrote, ‘Thatcherism is a myth that tries to justify Conservative victory by ascribing it to fundamental social and attitudinal changes, rather than to the default of any credible alternative political force. It is a myth propagated by the left †¦enthusiastically taken up sections of the mainstream quality media and given wide coverage in the mid-1980s.[35] Thatcher no doubt, made most of the advantages the 1980s had given to her.[36] Circumstances helped some of the ideas of Mrs Thatcher to gain prominence and acceptance. The economy was in recession when she took over power. There was rampant inflation by the mid -1970s, industrial disruption was the order of the day, and trade unions were getting more militant and their influence was growing rapidly. Strikes were rampant, cumulating in the 1979 Winter of Discontent strikes. Keynesian techniques of economic management did not appear to have any answer to the super inflation.[37] The economy slowed down and economic growth became stagnated. This greatly affected the purchasing power of the sterling. Coupled with that, many people lost their jobs as a lot of companies closed down; particularly manufacturing companies. The morale and mood of the nation was low. The government were unable to finance a lot of state projects, particularly social welfare. Also in other western countries, governments became more prudent and were spending less. Public expenditure was curtailed, money supply was being controlled and free market forces and expanding the role of the market was gaining greater acceptance.[38] Further more, partly in response to pressure from the IMF, the labour government made huge cuts in public spending, introduced monetary targets and continued with incomes policy.[39] Economic regeneration was Mrs Thatcher’s major electoral commitment and she pledged to cut the dole queues.[40] The defeat of the labour government in the 1979 general election was due mainly to its own failures in government and had little to do with the opposition.[41] Thatcher then came along and challenged many established beliefs and interests. She brought about a new way of doing things. She hardly compromised on many of her deeply held political beliefs and principles. She was determined to reduce the increase in money supply so that inflation would be squeezed out of the system. She had to abandon formal income policies and ‘deals’ between government, employees and trade unions as one way of fighting inflation.[42] She also sought to reduce public sector spending and encourage a free market orientated economy. This meant selling state- owned industries and services to private individuals, removing stifling regulations on business and encouraging the sale of council houses.[43] This policies were effectively made to jump start the economy and reduce inflation. Lower public spending will lead to tax cuts and this will encourage economic growth that will in turn lead to creation of more jobs.[44] Thatcher also sought to encourage responsible trade union practices. She did not ascribe to the militancy and growing influence of trade unions. She wanted to introduce reforms that will free the labour market and remove some of the immunities that trade unions have long enjoyed under common law.[45] Thatcher wanted to restore the authority of government once again. This she intended to achieve by resisting the damaging claims of interest groups as well providing significant increases in resources for the armed forces and the police.[46] Margaret Thatcher, no doubt left an indelible mark on the annuals of British history. She was a very determined lady who believed in her own convictions and vividly pursued them. Finally, I feel that Thatcherism is too wide and does not embody a consistent body of principles. I also feel that circumstances prevailing at the time Thatcher came in to power helped some of her polices and ideas to gain prominence and acceptance. However, I do not subscribe to the notion that Thatcherism is an opportunistic response to events. Mrs Thatcher from the day she was made the leader of the Conservative party made clear her determination to create conditions for the revival of Britain. Thatcherism as a whole embodies values and principles that Mrs Thatcher felt would cure Britain of all the ills that afflicted her at that time, although the concept was very complex and had no consistent principles. Bibliography Cole, J (1987) The Thatcher Years: A Decade of Revolution in British Politics, BBC Books, London Metropolitan University Cooke, A.B (1985) Margaret Thatcher: The Revival of Britain, Aurum Press, London Hirst, P (1989) After Thatcher, Williams Collins and Sons, London Ingle, S ( 1987) The British Party System, Blackwell, Oxford Jenkins, S (2006) Thatcher Years: A revolution in three Acts, Penguin, London Jessop, B Bonnett, K, Bromley, S and Ling, T (1988) Thatcherism, Polity Press, Cambridge Kavanagh, D (1990) Thatcherism and British Politics, Second Edition, Oxford University Press, Oxford Norton, P (19967) The Conservative party, Prentice Hall, London Thatcher, M (1995) The path to power, Harper Collins, London Webb, P.D (2000) The Modern British party System, Sage, London Young, H (1989) Thatcherism and British Politics, Second Edition, Oxford University press, Oxford Footnotes [1] Kavanagh (1990) p.1 [2] Kavanagh (ibid) p.1 [3] Kavanagh (ibid) p.1 [4] Kavanagh (ibid) p.1 [5] Young, H (1989) p.135 [6] Overbeck (1989) citied in Jessop, Bonnett, Bromley, Ling (1988) p.1 [7] Keegan (1984) Jessop, Bonnett, Bromley, Ling (1988) p.1 [8] Jessop, Bonnett, Bromley, Ling (1988) p.1 [9] Young, H (ibid) p.2-3 [10] Young, H (ibid) p.2-3 [11] Young, H (ibid) p.3 -4 [12] Young, H (ibid) p.17 [13] Cole, J. C (1987) p.43 [14] Cooke, A.B (1981) p.vii [15] Young, H (1989) p.137 [16] Cole, J (1987) p.1 [17] Ingle (1987) p.42 [18] Ingle, S (ibid) p.42 [19] Ibid p.42 [20] ibid p.42 [21] Kavanagh, D (1990) p.9 [22] Kavanagh (ibid) p.9 [23] Kavanagh (ibid) p.9-10 [24] O’Shea, A (1984) p.35 [25] O’Shea, A (ibid) p.35 [26] O’Shea, A (ibid) p. 22 [27] O’Shea, A (ibid) p.21-23 [28] O’Shea, A (ibid) p.30-31 [29] Jessop, Bonnett, Bromley Ling (1988) p.24 [30] Jessop, Bonnett, Bromley Ling (ibid) p.29 [31] Jessop, Bonnett, Bromley Ling (1988) p.29 [32] Kavanagh (ibid) p.10 [33] Jessop, Bonnett, Bromley Ling (1988) p.12 [34] Jessop, Bonnett, Bromley Ling (1988) p.24 [35] Hirst, P ( 1989 ) After Thatcher, William Collins, p.11 [36] Hirst, P ( 1989 ) p.16 [37] Kavanagh (ibid) p.12 [38] Kavanagh (ibid) p.12 [39] Kavanagh (ibid) p.12 [40] Young, H (1989) p.140 [41] Hirst, P ( 1989 ) p.17 [42] Kavanagh (ibid) p.11-13 [43] Kavanagh (ibid) p.13 [44] Kavanagh (ibid) p.13 [45] Kavanagh (ibid) p.13 [46] Kavanagh (ibid) p.13

Biodiversity Essay -- plants extinction ecosystem

Biodiversity Imagine this: you step outside and feel the barren, rough, red Earth beneath your feet. There’s not a single plant in sight—no rustling of the leaves, no mighty towering trees to block the severe winds, and the scorching heat of the sun searing upon your face because there’s no shade. And when you take a whiff of air, you feel nothing filling up the space inside your lungs, liberating your body’s activities. What’s wrong with this picture? It’s not possible, of course. Even though plants aren’t the building blocks of life, they’re pretty close and without them, most of life wouldn’t exist—YOU wouldn’t exist. In my research, I will go in-depth about biodiversity—which defines as a quantity of the relative diversity among organisms present in various ecosystems (WordIQ). My research will focus mainly on the importance of plants/concern over plant extinction, rare, threatened, and endangered species, wa ys to prevent this from happening around our area, among other things. Why plants are essential to biomass/distress over plant extinction   Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  As you may already know, plants are essential to the biomass through a list of numerous reasons. Plants provide for many important aspects of life, such as oxygen, food, medicines, beauty and tranquility. So what’s the agony over just a couple of vanished plant species? Research shows that if plant species continue to decline in major ecosystems, it could lead to the sixth mass extinction on planet Earth.   Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  According to experiments and statistics conducted by scientists, 28 percent of plants have decreased over the last 20 years. These results were supported by extensive destitution of habitats affected by human activities (Ananthaswamy, 2004). Each year, an estimated 17,000 to 100,000 species perish from our planet (World IQ, 2004). Reasons for US-wise status of rare, threatened, and endangered species and process of listing   Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Some reasons for these â€Å"rare, threatened, and endangered† plant types are caused by nitrogen pollution. Based on recent studies experimented by some UK colleagues of the Open University in Milton Keynes, they found the soil/plant richness of high nitrogen-pollution concentrated areas was much lower than that of low-pollution concentrated areas. These results were drawn from samples taken from 68 different grassland sites. The number of species in each site ... ... even to provide shelter, shade, and clothes for us, among other things. Without them, we wouldn’t be here. They give so much for us, yet we give very little back to them. So if you have a bit of time on your hands someday, go out and plant a tree or do something that’ll give back to the ecosystem! Bibliography Entries Anathaswamy, A. (2004). â€Å"Earth Faces Sixth Mass Extinction†. New Scientist. â€Å"BGCI becomes an Associate Participant in the Global Biodiversity Information Facility (GBIF)†. BGCI Online. (2004). â€Å"Community Partnerships†. DeKalb Greenspace. (2001). â€Å"Definition of Biodiversity†. WordIQ. (----). Fisher, P (2004). â€Å"Landowners Receive More than $7 Million to Conserve Imperiled Species Through the Fiscal Year†. U.S. Fish and Wildlife Service. â€Å"Listed Species in Dekalb County†. U.S. Fish and Wildlife Service. (2004). Palmer, T (2004). â€Å"Grant Awarded to Save Rare Plant†. The Ledger Online. page 4. â€Å"Summary of Listed Species: Species and Recovery Plans as of 9/22/04†. Threatened and Endangered Species System (TESS). (2004). â€Å"Species Information: Threatened and Endangered Animals and Plants†. U.S. Fish and Wildlife Service. (2004).

60s America Through Images Essay

The 1960s proved a tumultuous time for the United States in how there were so many historical developments in the mere space of a decade. Throughout the 60s Americans experienced and witnessed many events such as war, civil rights campaigns and protests, assassinations, technological developments and the emergence of a popular culture and counterculture. Photography came to the fore at the start of the 20th century and a huge emphasis was put on the visual to experience culture. The historical developments of the 60s can be seen clearly through the visual culture as they portray the historical events of the time through the medium of imagery. With the growing popularization of television, imagery could be rapidly distributed to each home and this is one of the main reasons that visual culture had such a profound effect on those who witnessed the events portrayed. â€Å"By the end of the decade 90% of Americans had access to television sets† this staggering amount of led to a high level of influence though reception of imagery. For instance when we look at the portrayal of the typical American family one would often see an image of a close-knit family sitting together watching television. In the space of a decade from the 1950s television was incorporated in the American family (see fig. 1. ). Pictures such as this defined the family of the late 50s early 60s and incorporated the television into American families. With the television being a vital part of family life there was a constant flow of imagery available for the family to view. We can clearly see through images such as this that the US population began to regularly consume what the television provided. The photograph captures the importance television as a family pastime and how it gradually became the main focus of family time. Therefore we can see that the visual culture through the media such as television, newspapers and the images they provided to the population had a serious impact on historical developments of the 1960s. Information was constantly received by the population usually alongside images of events and the visual culture affected the historical developments of the 60s in how it influenced reactions to events. It is also evident that visual culture heavily influenced the 1960s due to the amount of images and videos from the time that are still available for viewing today. Figure 1. Everett F. Baumgardner. Family watching Television. 1958. Photograph. Nation Archives and Records of Administration. http://web. archive. org/web/20071226081329/teachpol. tcnj. edu/amer_pol_hist/thu mbnail427. htm One of the most important events to happen in the 1960s which greatly affected the US was its part of was the Vietnamese War. The war had a vital part in the 60s decade as it spanned through the whole of the 60s up until 1975. The war was the first of its kind as it was reported in great detail through television and newspapers. Essentially the Vietnam War and visual culture of the time went hand in hand as the relationship between the two was constant throughout the 60s. For over a decade people could get a visual insight into the war which had never been available before and many believe this is one of the main reasons that the US lost the war. President Lyndon seen this and argued that â€Å"if the previous wars had been televised, the United States would not have preserved in fighting them. Franklin Roosevelt and Harry Truman would have lost support for their policies even as he lost support for his, forcing the abandonment of his campaign for his re-election. † It was due to the constant visual bombardment of the ugly realities of war on the US people that turned them against the war and forced many to protest the war (fig. 2 and fig. 3). Figure 2. Horst Faas. A father holds the body of a child. 1964. Photograph. Available at Photographer Collection: Horst Faas http://blogs. denverpost. com/captured/2012/05/15/photographer-collection-horst-faas-vietnam/5689/ . Figure3. Horst Faas. Lt. Col. George Eyster of Florida. 1966. Photograph. Available at Photographer Collection: Horst Faas http://blogs. denverpost. com/captured/2012/05/15/photographer-collection-horst-faas-vietnam/5689/ Photographers such as Horst Fass gained their reputation for showing the horrors of the Vietnamese war through their photographs. Faas captured some of the most controversial photographs that showed the suffering of both sides of the war. When we look at these photos we can see the influence of the Vietnamese War on the visual culture of the United States. Pictures such as these were received on a daily basis and they dominated the decade visually becoming some of the most well known images from the 60s and the war itself. The graphic pictures show the ugly side of the Vietnamese War and photographs such as the father clutching his daughter’s body in front of soldiers dealt with the death of civilians while the photo of injured soldiers showed frailty of US troops. At the time these photographs seen showed the truth about the war and Fass would go on to win a Pulitzer Prize for his work in Vietnam. When we look these images it is clear that both reflect on the dark chaos of the war and the ugly realities which the civilian population had never seen before. The visual culture greatly affected the population’s war morale as it provided frail images of US soldiers either dead or wounded something which was not shown in previous wars. The reporting of the Second World War and the Korean War was different in that it was filtered with most hearing reports through radio broadcasts and newspapers which were controlled by the government. By the 60s there had been major developments in media reporting in that they had become more liberated. By the 60s multiple channels were emerging with their own news reporters providing multiple stories and recounts of different parts of the war. Therefore there was a vast increase in the amount of broadcasts and images being sent into the American homes greatly influencing a majority of the population. With photographers such as Faas working in Vietnam and capturing images showing innocent civilians being killed the United States population saw an unseen side to its army throughout the Vietnamese war as the army was shown in a very negative view. It can clearly be seen that photographers such as Faas greatly influenced the visual culture of the US throughout the 60s and these images had a significant impact in historical developments leading to the war effort becoming unpopular and encouraging anti war efforts. Figure 4. Ron Haeberle. My Lai Massacre. 1968. Photograph. Available at Life Magazine. Vol. 67. No. 23 . The negative view of the US army was perhaps most emphasised in the My Lai massacre in 1968. Throughout past wars the US army was seen as a symbol of justice and a manifestation of the good in that they were fighting to save the world but with the emergence of images and reports of events such as the Mai Lai Massacre there morality and ethics were questioned. Some even compared the US army to the Germans of World War Two in their way of psychologically thinking. â€Å"Two researchers concluded that Americans were deflecting the responsibility with the same defence mechanism the Germans used to rationalize the Holocaust. † The photography which emerged from the massacre by Ron Haeberle shocked the world and spurred many of the US into protesting against the war. (Fig4. Here we can clearly see why many considered comparing the US army’s actions to that of the German holocaust, the brutality and graphic detail which Haeberle’s photos captured had never been so widely distributed before. The terror on the faces or the sheer number of bodies appearing in some of the images had not been captured on camera before and these pictures were seen by thousands when they were published in magazines such as Life and greatly affected the visual culture intake of the American population. These particular photos had a huge influence on historical developments later in the war such as the protests and the investigations into what happened in the war. From looking at images such as photographs taken from the 1960s we can clearly see that the Vietnam had a huge influence on visual culture at the time and visual culture that would later emerge in the 70s. This was due to the fact that the war took up so many aspects of American life as it was a constant through the entire decade of the 60s. Regular exposure to the ugly realities of battle is thought to have turned the public against the war, forcing withdrawal of American troops and leaving the way clear for eventual Communist victory. †The visual culture was hugely influenced by the Vietnam War in the 60s it was mostly through photography and videos shown to the public by the media but later it influenced visual culture through art such as sculpture and painting. After the war ended in 1975 countless memorials were erected and many artists were inspired by the photographs this is evident in the sculpture The Three Soldiers Memorial sculpted in 1984 by Frederick Hart displayed in Washington. From looking at the Vietnam War throughout the 60s it is evident that it influenced the future of the visual culture as much as the visual culture influenced the developments of the war. The 60s decade can be defined as a decade of social revolution within the US. Many different causes gained strength and a massive following through their protests to further their cause. During this decade many protested for different reasons such as anti-war campaigners and those looking for the equal rights. There were movements for many different causes such as the African American civil rights movement, Hispanic and Chicano movement and the Gay Rights movement. For example with the Vietnamese War came protests against the war throughout the 60s. Those who were influenced by the atrocities shown in reports and images sent from Vietnam protested avidly throughout the 60s hence we can say the visual culture of the US had a great influence on the historical developments of the 60s, However although in the 60s protesting became very popular it was introduced through the Civil Rights movements in the late fifties early 60s and its idea of peaceful protesting. The 60s became a time associated with protest due to the vast amounts of protests staged for different reasons throughout the 60s. One of the major protest movements of the 60s was the Civil Rights Movement. These protests initially started in the late 50s but peaked in the 60s and were a catalyst of many other protests in the 60s. Those who protested for civil rights did so in a peaceful way and this greatly influenced the other protests such as the anti-war protests. Once again we can see that the visual culture through the medium of photography greatly influenced the development of these protests. Once again the population of the US was provided with images shocking to behold. The most influential case is perhaps the protest in Birmingham Alabama in 196 where the police reacted with unneeded violence. â€Å"Many argue that the dramatic clashes between nonviolent civil rights demonstrators and southern law enforcement in Birmingham and Selma were the principle impetus behind the enactment of the Civil Rights Act of 1964 and the Voting Rights Act of 1965, respectively. † Photographers of the time captured the violence of the police force and once again widely distributed and impacted on the community causing widespread support for the movement. When we look at what photographers such as Bill Hudson and Bob Adelman captured in their photographs we can see why the visual culture had such an impact on the historical developments regarding the Civil Rights Movement (Fig. 5 and Fig. 6). The image of the youth being attacked by the police dog is very harrowing and controversial, through this image the US seen the severity of racism and its unneeded violence. This photo became a huge part of the visuality of the Civil Rights Campaign’s attempt to gain support from the rest of the US population due to the severity of the photo and how controversial it was. Meanwhile Hudson’s photo of the protestors grouping together to take cover from water cannons can be seen as a symbol of unification of the protestors against the oppression of the police force and the city of Birmingham. There are countless images such as these two that were taken from the Birmingham Campaign This protest was a rally point for the Civil Rights Campaign and the images taken from Birmingham united and encouraged other people to protest in the south. The visual culture greatly influenced the outcome of the Civil Rights Movement as the Birmingham protest was captured in photography and gave the rest of the US an insight into what was happening in the South. These images had a significant impact on 1960s America and provided a major boost for the campaign as it received national attention leading to desegregation and equal opportunity for the coloured population. This protest was a rally point for the Civil Rights Campaign and the images taken from Birmingham united and encouraged other coloured people to protest in the south. The visual culture greatly influenced the outcome of the Civil Rights Movement as the Birmingham protest was captured through the photographers and gave the rest of the US an insight into what was happening in the South. These images had a significant impact on 1960s America and provided a major boost for the campaign as it received national attention leading to the gradual desegregation of the US and eventual equal opportunity for the coloured population. Figure 5. Bill Hudson. Birmingham Protest. 1963. Photograph. Available at Iconic photos http://iconicphotos. wordpress. om/2010/06/26/birmingham/. Figure6. Bob Adelman. Ingram Park Birmingham. 1963. Photograph. Available at J. Paul Getty Museum. http://www. getty. edu/art/gettyguide/artObjectDetails? artobj=258562 . The Civil Rights Movement provided an example of peaceful protest which became a popular way of protesting throughout the 60s. The social group which held a majority of the protests at the time were third level students . â€Å"From the civil rights demonstrations of the early sixties, students have turned to protest both the war in Vietnam and the policies of their schools. It is no exaggeration to give college students credit for making Vietnam a national issue. †They were influenced by the Civil Rights Movement and based their protests on the same ideology in peaceful protests. The 60s were a time of constant protest for students. The issues of the student protest movements range from racial discrimination, the war on poverty, and the war in Vietnam, to particular policies of the universities. However it was the anti- war protests that spurred the most conflict between the students and the authorities. The visual culture made impressions in developing the protests through the use of printing presses as seeing photos such as Faas’ or Adelman’s spurred the student bodies into action. With the emergence of the My Lai massacre and other such atrocities protests escalated to a climax at the end of the 60s with the Columbia University protests of 1968. Students discovered that the university was secretly affiliated with the Department of Defence’s weapon research and openly protested this affiliation with occupying university buildings and this eventually led to their violent removal. However it was this violence by the authorities that increased support for the protestors. â€Å"In his study of the Columbia Crisis in the spring of 1968, Barton (1968) found that the use of excessive police force against demonstrators had the effect of increasing the sympathy of faculty and students for the tactics (a sit-in and a general strike) employed by the demonstrators. † This violence recorded through the news and photographs once again captivated the US and encouraged many to take part in the protests (Fig. 7). The imagery taken from the by photographers such as Morris captured the harsh measures the authorities and when these pictures were published in newspapers and magazines people began to empathize with the protestors. It is evident in each movement that the media greatly influenced the historical developments through imagery such as photography. Through photography and the media it can be said that the visual culture impacted the outcome of many movements such as the African-American civil rights movements, the anti-war protests and the gradual end of the war. Figure 7. Larry C. Morris. Police forcing Columbia Students out. 968. Photograph. Available at The New York Times. Imagery was a huge part of protests throughout the 60s through photographs of the events but other visuals emerged with the protestor’s use of posters. With the gradual growth of homemade printing presses simple yet colourful posters began to emerge at protests. At protests there was a constant bombardment of simple yet very controversial. The poster entitled ‘it’s the real thing for S. E. Asia’ was simple, eye catching and precise the bright colour of the posters caught bystander’s eyes and presented its argument outwardly in the face of the public (Figure 8. . Posters such as the ‘it’s the real thing for S. E Asia’ were a common site at protests against Vietnam and mocked capitalism and the military tactics that were employed during the time. These protests were against the stupidity and brutality of the war emerged in the early 60s with controversial posters such as this one becoming a more common sight. Anti-war protests provided the majority of the controversial posters as they attempted to highlight the problems with the war. By nature these posters

Postmodern Youth Culture - 2480 Words

This essay I am going to discuss contemporary youth culture, and how fashion and appearance are being used to communicate a certain identity. My main focus will be on trying to explain how they are characteristic for the post modern are and how they are distinct from â€Å"authentic† subcultures. Furthermore I will look into the central role consumption have in post modern youth cultures. When discussing these different ideas, I have chose to look into two contemporary youth cultures; the hipster and the clubbers. Fashion and appearance are about showing who we are. Kratz and Reimer (1998) state how fashion is a cultural phenomen that we use to communicate to others our identity. This identity could be social and cultural, it can be showing†¦show more content†¦It is not be denied that fashion is the most visible act of consumption, therefore also the most visible way to communicate thru consumption (Miles, 1998). Hipsters communicate thru fashion by not following the catwalk trends, the main trend within this culture is wearing vintage and thriftshop inspired clothes, often in unexpected combinations. Referring back to the codes of fashion, and how subcultures broke these codes, Hipsters can be said to do the same (hebdiges, 1979). This culture are trying do differentiate themselves from everything that they see as mainstream. It is clear that this craving after differentiation are a well know aspect within postmodernity, which could be explained by the impossibility to do so becau se there are no longer any rules, everything has already been done (Appignanesi amp; Garrat, 2004; Muggleton, 2000) Drawing on this statement about postmodernity, It can be claimed how â€Å"indie† now have become mainstream, especially when it comes to fashion and style. Even though almost all subcultrual style did at some point become mainstream, the difference is that when that happened the innovators of the style, the subculture, turned away from that style. Today Kratx and Reimer(1998) argues how trends seem to last much longer, how â€Å"subcultures† stick to them, even after adopted by the mainstream.Show MoreRelatedBecoming Black : Rap And Hip Hop, Race, Gender, Identity, And Politics Of Esl Learning1632 Words   |  7 Pagespg. 349-350) â€Å"In the case of African youths, whose language and identity are we teaching/assuming in the classroom if we do not engage rap/hip hop?† (Ibrahim, pg. 366) â€Å"Whose knowledge is being valorized and legitimated and thus assumed to be worth of study and whose knowledge and identity are left in the corridors and the hall ways of our schools?† (Ibrahim, pg. 366) In what sense might hip-hop be described as revolutionary today? 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