Wayward Girls

In the United States, the decade of the 1960s began with dreams of prosperity, justice, and equality with the election of John F. Kennedy as President. After Kennedy’s assassination on November 22nd, 1963, the decade experienced increasing turmoil in the form of US involvement in the Vietnam War, an increased emphasis on civil rights and feminism, the rise of countercultural movements, and technological advancements. 

The Vietnam War began as a civil war between the government of North Vietnam, which wanted to unite the country under communist rule, and South Vietnam, which wanted to maintain a more democratic style of government. The war was part of a large-scale conflict taking place across Indochina as former colonies sought self-governance. The United States sided with South Vietnam as part of a larger effort to counter the spread of the Soviet Union’s power and influence, a conflict referred to as the “Cold War.” After years of offering military and intelligence support, in 1963 the US sent troops to fight the communist Viet Cong. The conscription of US citizens to fight in the war proved unpopular with the American public, with protests against the war spreading as the years passed until the US withdrawal in 1973.