The Report of the President’s commission on Campus Unrest (1970)

        Throughout the Vietnam War, American soldiers were faced with many new tactics by the communist Viet cog on unfamiliar ground. Many American citizens strongly opposed the war.  Philip Caputo, “describes how difficult it was for American troops trained for conventional combat to adjust to the realities of a guerrilla war of attrition against a largely unseen enemy.” (p. 339). Following incidents of the war, an increase in human casualties created sentiment that promoted protests and riots. One such example is the incident that took place at Kent University Campus. “During a tense confrontation, the poorly trained guard troops and nervous guardsmen fired on student protesters, killing four.” (p.332). Demonstrations continued to be commonplace as the people’s sentiment toward the war saw a foreseeable political and economic downturn.

Throughout the 1970’s, there was a period of economic stagflation, where both high rates of inflation and a stagnant economy were present.  Stagflation is usually cause by a shock in the supply of an economy. With the ongoing war, the United States made the wrongful decision to pump even more money into the economy, it needed the money for the war, but this decision ultimately made the situation much worse.  The 1970’s was a time where shortage at gas pumps was rampant.  Signs such as “Sorry, No Gas Today” littered the coastlines, and the very few available gasoline you could find, was price hiked tremendously.

Many experts today share a common view that the Vietnam War played a contributing factor that directly influenced inflation.  There were budget deficits, and as with any war, wars can become quite expensive.  Eventually, the American veterans came home defeated. When these veterans came back from Vietnam, they were not as well received or highly praised as previous veterans by their fellow citizens.  Eight years later, North and South Vietnam finally united into one cohesive country. The Vietnam War can be seen as the most devastating dud in history.

Gloria Steinem, Equal Rights for Women—Yes and No (1970)

“Women are not more moral than men. We are only uncorrupted by power. But we do not want to imitate men, to join this country as it is, and I think our very participation will change it. Perhaps women elected leaders—and there will be many of them—will not be so likely to dominate black people or yellow or men; anybody who looks different from us.”

Pre-1970s, women were seen as vulnerable, nurturing creatures. It was believed that women were biologically more inclined to desire caretaking, as well as naturally more level-headed than men. Women during the 60s and 70s challenged those beliefs. Gloria Steinem tries to convince a patriarchal society that women should play a role that has been dominated by men since the inception of government. She desires for women to have political power, but strangely, she uses the same preconceived notions about women, thus reinforcing gender stereotypes. She says that women are more moral than men, uncorrupted by power (because women are innocent). She is using these tactics to convince Americans that women should be in power because they will not be as corrupt as men.

Regardless of Steinem’s prominent position in American society as a journalist and social and political activist, she still faced discrimination because of her gender. Since she is a woman, she has faced legal and social discrimination. From being refused to be served in public restaurants, to being turned away from apartment rentals, she has felt the immense pressure to be a stereotypical woman (housewife) and retaliation against her nonconformist ways. The society she lives in isn’t ready to see a self-fulfilled woman like Steinem. They prefer women to be vulnerable, dependent on, and submissive to men, and wear tapes over their mouths. Steinem says no more to this treatment of women as animals. It’s time to take the tape off our mouths.

“We felt that this was our campus, that we were doing nothing wrong, and that they had no right to order us to disperse. If anyone ought to leave, it’s them, not us.”

Tom Grace, The Shooting at Kent State(1970)

              Many Americans had protested the Vietnam War for different reasons by 1970. Especially college students protested strongly because college deferments would be abolished and students would be drafted into military service. Despite the strong protests over the nation, the government sent troops and bombed into Cambodia. It accelerated the protest movement and students of Kent State University held a protest on May 1, 1970. During the protest, four students were killed and nine students were wounded by the National Guard, and the National Guard was exempted from prosecution.

              Students had questioned the way the government slided into war, ignoring people’s intentions. Also, they believed their civil rights to express their opinions should be guaranteed as Tom grace thought, “we were doing nothing wrong, and that they had no right to order us to disperse.” However, the government tried to force people into silence in reality. The shooting at Kent State made people notice that they were actually oppressed by the government and it was not the government of, by and for people.

Equal Rights for Women- Yes and No (1970)
Gloria Steinem

“If laws permit women equal work and pay opportunities, men will then be relieved of their role as sole breadwinner. Fewer ulcers, fewer hours of meaningless work, equal responsibility for his own children: these are a few of the reasons that Women’s Liberation is Women’s liberation too.”

This is an interesting position because Steinem points out that having more responsibilities is just as restrictive as having no responsibilities. And it is true. Economically speaking, having two paychecks provides more opportunities for the family. Most families would have benefited from two paychecks. It is basic economic sense. Also being able to diffuse the workload allows more time for the father to see his children. Social reality dictates that children need the influence of both parents to adjust properly. A shadow for a father isn’t much of a guiding figure. The stress would also be diffused. Being solely accountable for food, shelter and clothing is stressful. And if he loses his job, there is nothing for the family to fall back on. In terms of the family’s health, mentally and physically, it would be best if the mother could work as well.

Steinem’s position as a woman makes her comprehensive to these ideas. She has had firsthand experience. People expected her to follow in the footsteps of her predecessors and become a housewife. She saw how it affected the balance and health of the family. She was most likely discriminated against for being “biologically inferior”. Growing up in that society made her realize how unfairly and ridiculously women were treated. These factors obviously affected the way she thought and motivated her to protest against the absurd hegemonies of society.