Cultural Differences Between The 1950's And Today

Although, the culture of the 1950s was very different from today’s world, the events during that time helped make it possible to build our country into what it is today. Men and women both held different roles in raising their family. The phrase “separate but equal” played an important role for education. Did you know that women were asked to leave their home to serve for our country during the 1950’s?

The roles of the men and women were very different in the 1950’s. The workforce ratio was 5 men to 2 women. Men in many cases were the bread winners of the family. They would get up in the morning and head off to work for the day. When evening came, they would come home to their wife and children, sit down for dinner, watch the news on TV, or read the newspaper. Then they would go to bed to get up and do it all over again the next day.

I look at my grand-parents, who started their family in the mid-1950’s. My grand-daddy served in the Korean War from 1950 to 1953. When he came back
home, they were married, built a house on the beach and had a baby, 10 years later they had 5 children. My grand-daddy was a very hard worker, who never missed a day of work in his life; he worked for a nuclear power plant. He would come home to a house full of kids, sometimes there would be kids there that weren’t even his running around making a racket. Nana would serve him dinner on a tray in the living room. If he was working outside in the yard you would hear my Nana yell “Johnny, Dinner!” which she still does to this day. She did this with a smile of her face every time, because she loved him so much and was very proud to be his wife and the mother of his children. Nana was a hair dresser before they were married. After the kids were born she stayed at home to take care of them and be a wonderful supporting wife.

Education was different in the 1950’s for whites than blacks. There was a term “separate but equal” which was used until 1954. Having the races be separate was thought to be a correct method to insure that all received a proper education. In the law suit, Brown v. the Board of Education of Topeka, Kansas, wrote “separate facilities for blacks did not make those facilities equal according to the Constitution”. The first black teenager to attend Little Rock Central High School was Elizabeth Eckford. Today you can walk into any classroom and see a range of different students of all races.

The US Military and their involvement with the Korean War (1950-1953), assisted in supporting the way our country is today.
During the 1950’s the military had issues with the Armed Services Integration Act of 1948, which President Harry S. Truman signed. Women could establish a permanent place in the military other than being a nurse, which was already in a permanent status. When the draft and recruitment came up short for the needed manpower, the services asked American Women to leave home and serve in the military. “Pink Collar” positions, which included personnel and administration services, were held for women. Part of their training included makeup and etiquette lessons. Pregnancy was a reason to give a woman an automatic discharge. By the end of the war in 1953 the number of women increased, but the percentage in armed forces declined. Now women are enlisting in military branches every day. Since the Vietnam War, women are enlisting in military every
day.

The Executive Order 9981, which expanded on Executive Order 8802 (prohibiting racial discrimination), by establishing an equal right of treatment and opportunity in the U.S. Military, for everyone. The operative statement reads: “It is hereby declared to be the policy of the President that there shall be equality of treatment and opportunity for all persons in the armed services without regard to race, color, religion or national origin. This policy shall be put into effect as rapidly as possible, having due regard to the time required to effectuate any necessary changes without impairing efficiency or morale.” This order has given many people the opportunity to enlist, including the women of today.

We live in a different world then they did 60 years ago. Today some women are the bread winners and the men stay at home, it was the other way around back in the 1950’s. Education is one of the most important things for all races and is more diverse than ever. Women are much a part of our military just as the men are. Although, the culture of the 1950s was very different from today’s world, the events during that time helped make it possible to build our country into what it is today.