The USA by 1975 (AQA A-Level History): Revision Notes
The Making of a Superpower
Understanding superpower status
Superpower refers to a nation holding a dominant position in international affairs with the capacity to exert substantial influence over global events through combined military, economic, and diplomatic strength. A strong economy underpins military capability, making economic power essential to superpower status.
The term was initially applied to Britain during the first half of the twentieth century. However, the Second World War brought about a pronounced decline in Britain's economic and military standing.
By the war's conclusion, the United States and the Soviet Union emerged as the world's two remaining superpowers, establishing a bipolar international order that would define the post-war era. This marked a fundamental shift in global power dynamics, with Britain's superpower status definitively ending.
The USA as a divided nation by 1975
By 1975, the United States had achieved recognition as the world's most powerful nation. Yet this superpower status masked deep internal divisions. American society remained fractured, particularly regarding the treatment and opportunities available to Native Americans, African Americans, and women.
These domestic tensions challenged the nation's self-image as a beacon of freedom and democracy, revealing contradictions between America's international position and its internal inequalities. The gap between America's global leadership role and its domestic social problems became increasingly apparent.
Presidential authority and Watergate
For over four decades, presidential power had expanded considerably. Both the Supreme Court and Congress found themselves unable to impose effective constraints on executive authority. The presidency had grown so powerful that other branches of government struggled to check presidential actions or decisions.
The Watergate Impact:
The Watergate affair fundamentally altered this dynamic. The scandal left the presidency substantially weakened by 1975, prompting renewed determination among legislators and judges to enforce constitutional limits on executive power.
Key consequences included:
- Americans became disillusioned with their system of government
- Public confidence in politicians and governmental institutions eroded markedly
- Citizens no longer maintained the respect or trust in their elected officials that had previously characterised American political culture
- Congress and the judiciary reasserted their constitutional authority over the presidency
Economic challenges
Following the Second World War, the American economy had experienced a prolonged period of expansion and prosperity. Throughout the early 1970s, the USA maintained its position as the world's most advanced economy. However, the economic boom had clearly ended by the time Gerald Ford succeeded Nixon as president in 1974.
Ford inherited severe economic difficulties. Inflation had reached 9% in 1976, whilst unemployment stood at 5.4%. Economists termed this combination stagflation—a problematic scenario characterised by sluggish economic growth accompanied by high unemployment and rising prices.
This economic phenomenon contradicted conventional economic theory, which suggested inflation and unemployment moved inversely. Stagflation puzzled economists because traditional remedies for inflation (tightening monetary policy) would worsen unemployment, whilst measures to reduce unemployment would exacerbate inflation.
The economy faced additional pressure from an energy crisis. In 1973, Arab oil-producing nations imposed an embargo on oil exports in retaliation for American support of Israel during the Yom Kippur War. As oil prices soared, the New York stock exchange experienced sharp declines.
The 1973 Energy Crisis Impact:
American suffering intensified when the Organization of Petroleum Exporting Countries (OPEC) quadrupled oil prices in December 1973. The consequences were immediate and severe:
- Petrol prices surged at American filling stations
- Long queues formed as drivers waited for fuel
- The stock market declined sharply
- Manufacturing costs increased across all sectors
- Consumer prices rose as businesses passed on higher energy costs
This energy crisis exposed American economic vulnerability and dependence on foreign oil supplies, undermining the nation's economic security.
America's global position
By the mid-1970s, the USA functioned as one of two superpowers whilst assuming a broader role as the self-proclaimed champion of democracy against Communist expansion. The direct confrontation exemplified by the Cuban Missile Crisis of 1962 had given way to a new approach—détente. This policy sought improved relations with both China and the Soviet Union, culminating in the Helsinki Agreements of 1975, which represented a high point in Cold War diplomacy.
Vietnam's Lasting Impact on Foreign Policy:
The Vietnam conflict produced lasting consequences for American foreign policy. Both the American public and Congress became considerably more sceptical of future military interventions that might lead to "another Vietnam."
When the USSR intervened in Angola in 1974, Nixon and Kissinger attempted but failed to persuade Congress to authorise American military involvement. This reluctance to commit forces abroad demonstrated how Vietnam had constrained American willingness to project military power, even as a superpower.
The USA became increasingly engaged in Middle Eastern affairs, particularly the Israeli-Arab conflict. Washington provided material and diplomatic support to Israel. During the 1973 Yom Kippur War, Nixon and Kissinger successfully restrained Israeli forces whilst simultaneously preventing Soviet intervention on behalf of the defeated Arab states.
However, American backing for Israel carried serious economic repercussions. Arab nations responded by imposing an oil embargo specifically targeting Americans for supplying arms to Israel, directly connecting American Middle East policy to domestic economic hardship. This demonstrated how foreign policy decisions could have immediate domestic economic consequences.
Social divisions
Despite superpower status, American society remained deeply fractured by 1975. Three groups—African Americans, Native Americans, and women—experienced particular disadvantages that highlighted the gap between American ideals and reality.
African Americans
African Americans had secured substantial legislative victories during the 1960s through the Civil Rights Act and Voting Rights Act. However, these legal advances did not translate into full equality.
Politically, progress emerged by the mid-1970s with increased representation. Whilst no black mayors held office in 1960, the 1970s saw African Americans elected as mayors in Los Angeles, Detroit, Cleveland, Birmingham, Oakland, and Atlanta. African American representation in Congress rose from eleven members in 1970 to eighteen by decade's end.
Progress and Persistent Inequality:
Socially, some improvements occurred:
- The proportion of black families earning over $10,000 annually increased from 3% in 1960 to 31% by the beginning of the 1970s
- This indicated growing black middle-class formation
However, persistent inequalities remained stark:
- Black male teenage unemployment reached 50%
- Half of black teenagers left high school without graduating
- An African American child faced twice the likelihood of dying before age one compared with a white child
- African American children had twice the probability of leaving school without completing their education
These statistics revealed that whilst legal barriers had fallen, structural disadvantages persisted.
Native American Indians
Native Americans constituted the most disadvantaged minority group. Many lived on reservations where conditions were markedly worse than for other Americans.
Native American Disadvantage:
The statistics revealed extreme inequality:
- Unemployment among Native Americans ran ten times higher than rates for other demographic groups
- On average, Native Americans lived twenty years less than other citizens
- The suicide rate proved one hundred times higher than for white Americans
These figures demonstrated the severe marginalisation and suffering experienced by Native American communities.
Wounded Knee Occupation, 1973:
Events at Wounded Knee, Dakota, in March 1973 highlighted their desperate situation:
Background: Several hundred Native Americans occupied the site—where the US Army had brutally massacred nearly 200 Indians in 1890.
Demands: The protestors presented the Government with a list of grievances that included broken treaties and decades of neglect.
Government Response: Two hundred FBI agents and other police forces surrounded Wounded Knee, and the siege garnered national and international publicity, drawing public attention to Native American suffering.
Outcome: The Government eventually agreed to examine their complaints, though meaningful change remained limited. The occupation became a symbol of Native American resistance and brought their plight to national consciousness.
Women
Women's rights had changed dramatically since the early 1960s, stimulated by evolving attitudes towards work, relationships, family structures, and personal autonomy.
Changing Attitudes:
Over two-thirds of female college students rejected the notion that a woman's primary place was in the home. Most women now expected to work throughout their lives, even when raising young families. Women increasingly entered occupations traditionally regarded as masculine domains, such as medicine and law.
These shifting attitudes represented a fundamental transformation in gender expectations and women's roles in American society.
Nevertheless, substantial obstacles persisted. Women received only 73% of the salaries paid to professional men and continued to dominate low-paid employment sectors. Moreover, 66% of adults classified as poor were female. Women remained underrepresented in positions of authority at local, state, and national levels, indicating that whilst attitudes had shifted, structural inequality endured.
By 1975, the optimism of the 1960s—inspired by Kennedy's presidency and the achievements of civil rights leaders such as Martin Luther King—had dissipated. The cynicism associated with Nixon and the Watergate scandal replaced earlier idealism. The USA had indeed become a superpower, but it remained a profoundly divided society where race, ethnicity, and gender continued to determine life chances and opportunities.
Key Points to Remember:
-
The USA achieved superpower status by 1975 through military, economic, and diplomatic strength, but faced serious internal divisions affecting Native Americans, African Americans, and women.
-
The Watergate scandal fundamentally weakened presidential authority and destroyed public confidence in government, marking a turning point in American political culture.
-
The American economy suffered from stagflation (9% inflation, 5.4% unemployment) and the 1973 energy crisis when OPEC quadrupled oil prices following the Arab oil embargo.
-
American foreign policy shifted from direct confrontation to détente with China and the USSR, whilst Vietnam created lasting Congressional reluctance to authorise military interventions abroad.
-
Despite Civil Rights legislation, African Americans, Native Americans, and women continued facing substantial inequalities in employment, education, health outcomes, and political representation by 1975.