1968: The Year that Changed The World

1968:

The Year That Changed the World

Political Unrest

1968 saw the peak of political unrest in all corners of the world. Several world leaders were being challenged, wars were being fought, citizens were rebelling and universities around the globe became the epicenter for social change. Below is an overview of some of the major political conflicts brewing that year:

Civil Rights:

The Civil Rights Movement in America had been in full swing for most of the 1960s. Protests, sit ins, demonstrations, riots and highly divided factions had formed and developed over the decade. The movement in 1968 moved to the colleges and universities heavily and lots of iconic and massive events occurred in this year.

4 April 1968, the Civil Rights Movement suffered what could be considered the largest blow to date. On 3 April, Martin Luther King Jr. traveled to Memphis, Tennessee to aid in the Memphis Sanitation Strike. Sanitation workers in the city of Memphis began protesting unequal pay, discrimination, and dangerous working conditions on 12 February. More than 1300 Black sanitation workers walked off the job and the men marched for months daily wearing signs that read “I Am A Man.” On the 3^rd of April, MLK appeared before protesters at the Mason Temple in Memphis and gave his iconic “I’ve Been to the Mountaintop” speech, in which he alluded to his own death. He had arrived in Memphis after receiving bomb threats the day before. The next evening as he stood on the balcony of his hotel room, he was shot and killed by James Earl Ray who was arrested at London Heathrow Airport two months later.

Moments before Martin Luther King is assassinated

The King Assassination Riots, or the Holy Week Uprising, took place in 125 cities in the United States – the largest of which occurring in Washington DC, Baltimore, Chicago and Kansas City. Damages from these riots reached upwards of $65 million and 21,000 protesters were arrested, 2,600 were injured and 39 people died in the frenzy. Many African Americans saw this as the end of the non-violence movement and became attracted to the more militant platforms of the Black Panther Party and leaders like Malcolm X and Stokley Carmichael.

Riots in Chicago

On the 11^th of April, President Johnson signed the Civil Rights Act of 1968 into law. This law, called the Fair Housing Act, prohibited discrimination in housing based on race, color, religion, national origin, sex, familial status and disability. A hate crime clause is included in the bill which permits federal prosecution for crimes that are enacted because of someone’s race, color, religion or national origin. The bill also includes a rider that makes it a felony to “travel in interstate commerce with the intent to incite, promote, encourage, participate in and carry on a riot.”

After the assassination of Martin Luther King, Ralph Abernathy took over leadership of the Southern Christian Leadership Conference and he led the Poor People’s Campaign. On Tuesday, 21 May, Abernathy and thousands of people erected at shantytown on the National Mall which they called Resurrection City. The inhabitants of this city stayed on the Mall for six weeks. On 20 June the police began breaking up the town with tear gas and by the 24^th over 1000 officers arrived and cleared the town – arresting 288 people, including Ralph Abernathy.

Resurrection City, National Mall

On 16 October 1968, one of the most iconic acts of civil disobedience occurred in at the Olympic Game in Mexico City. After winning the gold and bronze medals in the 200 meter race, African American runners Tommie Smith and John Carlos stood on the podium shoeless – as a representation of Black poverty, wearing a black scarf – to represent Black pride, their track suits were unzipped – to show solidarity with blue collar workers and donning a beaded necklace – that Carlos said was to honor those who had been “lynched, or killed and that no-one said a prayer for, that were hung and tarred. It was for those thrown off the side of the boats in the Middle Passage.” They also wore Olympic Project for Human Rights badges and both athletes held their fists up in the Black Power salute during the playing of the US National Anthem.

Tommie Smith and John Carlos at 1968 Olympic Games

Vietnam:

At the height of the 1968 fighting in Vietnam, the U.S. military was killing, every week, the same amount of people – or more – as died in the September 11^th attacks. The year began with the NY Times proclaiming WORLD BIDS ADIEU TO VIOLENT YEAR; CITY GETS SNOWFALL. And the ceasefire that had been put in place over the holidays continued into the new year, but by January 31 the Vietcong and North Vietnamese forces had launched the Tet Offensive by attacking the major cities of Hue and Saigon. The National Liberation Forces breeched the outer walls of the US Embassy in Saigon, showing the Johnson Administration that their opponents were indeed stronger than they had thought. The Tet Offensive’s attacks lasted until June with both sides claiming victory after hundreds of casualties. These casualties sparked the turn in public opinion of the war in America and talks of de-escalation began brewing.

An event that would not be revealed to the general public for more than a year also occurred in 1968: The My Lai Massacre. This massacre occurred on March 16, 1968 and between 347 and 504 unarmed Vietnamese civilians were murdered by Company C of the 23^rd Infantry Division. 26 American soldiers were charged with criminal charges such as rape, murder and mutilation but only the platoon leader William Calley Jr. was convicted. He served 3.5 years under house arrest of his life sentence.

My Lai Massacre

All over the world, protests and demonstrations were held in opposition to the war, its crimes and the draft. On Oct. 31, President Johnson announced the complete cessation of all air, naval and artillery bombardment of North Vietnam above the 20^th parallel but the end of US involvement in the war would not come until 1975.

France:

French Communists and Socialists joined forces to combat the capitalist practices of the Gaullist Party, headed by French President Charles de Gaulle. On 22 March 1968, protesters occupied an administration building at Paris University at Nanterre. The police surrounded the university but the protesters, upon the publication of their wishes against class discrimination and political bureaucracy controlling university funding, the protesters left peacefully and the matter was resolved without incident. This however would not be the case for the actions that followed. In May, the University at Nanterre was shut down by the administrators and more than 20,000 students, teachers and supporters marched to Sorbonne University in protest. This resulted in a clash with law enforcement including tear gas and batons. Several more demonstrations were held, now to not only reopen the closing universities but to free the hundreds of students who had been arrested. This time protesters created barricades and there were allegations that the Molotov cocktails and burning cars were used by policemen to make the protesters seem more violent than they were. Workers began to join the protests, performing sit-ins, walk outs and strikes – involving 11 million workers, more than 22% of the population of France, throwing the country onto the brink of revolution.

Protest Fliers reading: May 1968, the Beginning of a Long Struggle

and one depicting President de Gualle which reads "Just Vote, I'll Do The Rest"

In response to the unrest, President de Gaulle, fled to Germany stating “I do not want to give them a chance to attack the Elysee. It would be regrettable if blood were shed in my personal defense. I have decided to leave: nobody attacks an empty palace.” In his absence, the government ceased functioning as for more than 6 hours, no one knew where the president was. Protesters, whose numbers reached nearly 500,000 took to the streets of Paris chanting: “Adieu, de Gaulle!” On May 30^th, de Gaulle had returned and dissolved the National Assembly and called for a new election, ending the threat of revolution.

The results of this election saw not a new government, with socialist and communist leaders. Instead, the Gaullist Party was strengthened, but President de Gaulle himself had lost the respect and the support of the French people and they called for “Gaullism without de Gaulle”.

Mexico:

Ten days before the opening of the 1968 Summer Olympic Games in Mexico City, what would become known as the Tlatelolco Massacre happened in the Plaza de las Tres Culturas. Unrest had been brewing in Mexico as President Gustavo Diaz Ordaz had been shutting down labor unions and repressing the farmers movement. There were also concerns being voiced about the wealth gap in the newly prosperous country and a lot of Mexican citizens felt a growing solidarity with the revolution being incited in France.

Student Protesters being Held at Gun Point, Tlatelolco Massacre

On 22 July, two rival high school gangs had a fight broken up by the police, resulting in the arrests of 20 students, and countless students and teachers being beaten. This act of brutality was the lighting of the match that organized the student population in Mexico City to form the CNH: Consejo Nacional de Huelga – or National Strike Council. On Oct. 2, 1968 the CNH organized a peaceful gathering to take place in the Plaza de las Tres Culturas and this event was attended by the smallest crowd of CNH supporters to date – between 5,000 and 12,000 people. As speeches rang out of over the plaza, the Mexican armed forces opened fire, both on foot and from helicopters, on the unsuspecting crowd. The firing continued for upwards of two hours, resulting in the deaths of what is believed to be hundreds of students and the arrest of 1,300 protesters.

It would be 30 years before an official investigation would be launched into what citizens called “La Noche Triste”, the Sad Night.

Czechoslovakia:

On 5 January 1968, Alexander Dubcek was elected First Secretary of the Communist Party of Czechoslovakia. He set into motion a series of reforms that came to be called Prague Spring. His reforms were focused on the decentralization of the economy and deomocratization. He sought to bring freedoms to the people via banning restrictions on media, speech and travel. He also proposed the splitting of the nation into three republics – Bohemia, Moravia-Silensia and Sllovakia – which in the end resulted in the creation of the Czech Republic and the Slovak Republic.

Alexander Dubcek

20-21 August 1968, four nations – The Soviet Union, Bulgaria, Hungary and Poland; the Warsaw Pact Nations – invaded Czechoslovakia, killing 108 civilians and wounding another 500. The attack was met with non-violent resistance including painting over or changing street signs so as to confuse invading troops. The resistance held up for eight months, when it was only believed to be able to withstand four days. Ultimately, the Soviets regained control of the region and overturned many of the reforms Dubcek had instated. This invasion marked the end of Alexander Dubcek’s Prague Spring and strengthened the authority of the Communist Party of Czechoslovakia. The period following would be called “normalization” – which included returning to many of the pre-Dubcek politics including centralizing the economy, reinstating power to the police and expanding ties with other socialist nations.

Arts, Entertainment & Popular Culture

In a world with so much political and social unrest, as always, arts and entertainment reached a peak and at times provided an escape from the stresses of everyday life, and at others pushed back at the establishment and echoed the cries of growing rebellion. Below are some highlights from arts and entertainment in 1968:

Popular Films:

Popular Music

The Beatles release Hey Jude with the B-Side being Revolution and follow it later in the year with The White Album which includes songs such as Back in the USSR, Blackbird, While My Guitar Gently Weeps, and Helter Skelter.

Aretha Franklin releases R.E.S.P.E.C.T

Simon and Garfunkel release Mrs. Robinson

The Supremes release Love Child

Popular Culture

The first Big Mac is sold and costs just $0.49

60 Minutes airs for the first time on CBS

Hair opens at the Shaftsebury Theatre in London

Jackie Kennedy marries Aristotle Onassis

The Olympic Games are held in Grenoble, France and Mexico City, Mexico

Jackie Kennedy marries Ari Onassis

Science & Technology

Space Race:

For over a decade, the world had been engaged in the Space Race, the major players being the United States and the USSR. During 1968, the greatest advancements to date took place. On 21 December the Apollo 8, the second human spaceflight mission in the United States, was launched. It was the first manned spacecraft to leave Earth orbit, reach the moon, orbit it and return to earth. Frank Borman, James Lovell and William Anders manned the mission and were the first human beings to see the far side of the moon and the first to see the earth from that vantage.

The Apollo 8 Crew

Apollo 8, after a three day flight, arrived to the moon and orbited it ten times in twenty hours. From their orbit, they broadcast on television, reading the first 10 verses from the Book of Genesis. The success of this mission led to the first lunar landing the following year.

The three astronauts returned to earth on 27 December, landing in the Northern Pacific Ocean. Even in the year of major assassinations, new presidents, the near overturning of certain governments and the heat of Beatlemania, these three men were named the TIME Magazine Men of the Year and they were featured at the 1969 Super Bowl pre-game, leading the nation in the Pledge of Allegiance.

Medical Advancements:

2 January in Cape Town South Africa, Dr. Christiaan Barnard performed the second successful human heart transplant on Philip Blaiberg. Dr. Barnard had completed the first transplant only a month prior and his patient’s heart functioned normally for 18 days. Blaiberg’s heart functioned normally for 19 months.

Dr. Christiaan Barnard

Harvard University published a report that defined brain death, or “irreversible coma”. This report became the basis for many legal battles and led to the Uniform Determination of Death Act which allows a person to be pronounced legally dead even if life support equipment keeps the body functioning.

In Minnesota doctors performed the first successful non-twin bone marrow transplant to treat severe combined immunodeficiency.

Pediatrician Angelo DiGeorge first describes DiGeorge Syndrome, a common genetic disorder caused by the deletion of a small segment of chromosome 22. It is characterized by medical complications, cognitive impairment and brain morphologic changes and affects the function of many organ systems.

Online Resources

NPR Series Echoes of 1968

Spotify Playlist of Popular Songs

The Guardian: 1968 Photo Gallery