2014 Issue

9 wars and the Great Depression. Having lived through good times and bad times, members of this generation are conserva- tive and hardworking, invest safely, and love their country. Their individual sacrifices to society as a whole during those hard times, and the results that it fostered, has labelled them the Greatest Generation. I am from the Baby Boom generation — a generationmarkedbymany social changes. Those born before 1964 and after the world wars focused more on America’s culture as a whole and not individual survival. This has beenmarked by tremendous social change as well as the advancements in technology. The last of the baby boomers are turning fifty this year. Fifty years ago, in 1964, our society was going through an unprec- edented upheaval to the established social norms. This year marks the 50th anniversary of many events that have become such a part of our society and it is hard to imagine they all happened in a single year. The following is a list of some of the more interesting ones: • US Surgeon General announcement that smoking is hazardous to your health. • Design of the World Trade Center begins. • 24th amendment abolishing the “Poll Tax,” opening the door for millions old enough to vote. • Beatles invade America. 73 Million Viewers watch them on the Ed Sullivan Show. • Italy requests international help from keeping the Leaning Tower of Pisa from toppling over. • First Ford Mustang rolls off the assem- bly line. • Its a Small World United Nations Chil- dren’s Fund UNICEF exhibit opens at the NY World’s Fair. • Modern day Conservative Republican Party is born. • USCongress recognizes BourbonWhis- key as a distinctive product of the US. • The PLO is established. • Nelson Mandela is sentenced to life imprisonment. • Civil Rights Act is signed into law. • US Congress grants then President Lyndon B. Johnson power to conduct a full scale war in Southeast Asia without declaring war. • Martin Luther King is awarded the Nobel Peace Prize. • Malcolm X delivers Ballot or Bullet Speech. • National Guard troops are called up to respond to riots. First such use of the National Guard in a northern state since the Civil War. • 30,000 volunteer “Freedom Workers” descendonMississippi during the sum- mer months to register voters. • 150 Federal FBI agents are sent by then US Attorney General Robert Kennedy in response to the slaying of three Freedom Workers. The case became known as “Mississippi Burning.” • Last executions in the United Kingdom are performed. • Other than a handful of countries banned following both world wars, no- tably Germany and Japan, South Africa is banned from theWorldOlympics for the next 32 years. • Free Speech movement begins on US campuses with a sit-in by 3,000 students on the UC Berkeley campus. • President Johnson’s State of the Union address features his declaration, “War on Poverty” as part of his Great Society Program. • Modern environmental movement is started resulting in most of today’s landmark environmental regulations. • 6600 Cray Super Computer is devel- oped. • Software language “Basic” is devel- oped. • Online networking translation process- ing makes its debut using telephone lines and 2,000 terminals in 65 cities, delivering data on American Airline flights, all within three seconds. Each generation has its own perspective on change. Generation X or also known as the MTV generation is viewed as the generation whose worldview is based on change, on the need to combat corruption, dictatorships, abuse and AIDS. They are a generation in search of human dignity and individual freedom, the need for stability, love, tolerance, and human rights for all. There was a huge boom in technology and the Internet during the Millennial Genera- tion. Millennials think anything is possible, and the world is a smaller place for them due to the internet and communication. America is not the only place in the world. Like Generation X, they have seen it all, but they want to do something about it. They are smart and want to get educated in this competitive world. Generation Z, or as the PBS show “Front- line” just labeled it “Generation Like” due to the social media explosion, is the latest MESSAGE FROM THE COUNCIL’S CHAIR | continued on page 10