ABSTRACT
Beginning in the 1960s, a wave of social movement activism contributed to fundamental change in the United States. African Americans organized to dismantle Jim Crow segregation in the South and to secure voting rights and basic civil rights throughout the nation. Latinos and American Indians, inspired by the example set by the civil rights movement, also took to the streets. Feminists and gay rights activists organized to advocate progressive legislation, but also to change deeply rooted cultural norms that devalue women, gay men, lesbians, bisexuals, and transgendered individuals. Young Americans led a movement against war in Vietnam, and others organized to reverse environmental degradation. While elected of¿cials gave disproportionate representation to the wealthy and powerful, ordinary Americans acted outside institutionalized politics to pressure those of¿cials to respond to calls for progressive change.
