In These Times

TO those who despair about the state of the world today, it is salutary to cast the mind back to 1955 and ask the question, Was it a better, safer, and more hopeful place then? The answer is, on the whole, no, and it is worth examining why.

In the autumn of 1955 America seemed, on the surface at least, a stable, contented place under the benign neglect of President Eisenhower, perfectly encapsulated in the brilliant covers of that great artist Norman Rockwell. But it was not so. The South was still solid: its aim separate but equal, its reality segregationist and unequal. That huge problem remained entirely unsolved. It is a matter of judgment to what extent it has been solved in 2005, for the New Orleans disaster revealed a picture of poverty and underprivilege that made most Americans shudder. But it is incontestable that the United States is a more integrated and just society than it was then, and in the past half-century it has demonstrated that it can absorb and integrate enormous numbers of people. Indeed, some of these immigrant communities-Koreans, Cubans, Lebanese, Vietnamese, for example-have proved among the most successful groups in the country’s history. They have helped to ensure that the American economy, with a few blips and pauses, has continued to expand over the past fifty years, bringing unprecedented material prosperity for the overwhelming majority of the population. The population, in turn, has grown steadily, now nearing the 300 million mark, and calculated to be about 400 million by the mid-21st century.

About the Author

Paul Johnson

Mr. Johnson is a prominent author and historian.

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TO those who despair about the state of the world today, it is salutary to cast the mind back to 1955 and ask the question, Was it a better, safer, and more hopeful place then? The answer is, on the whole, no, and it is worth examining why.

In the autumn of 1955 America seemed, on the surface at least, a stable, contented place under the benign neglect of President Eisenhower, perfectly encapsulated in the brilliant covers of that great artist Norman Rockwell. But it was not so. The South was still solid: its aim separate but equal, its reality segregationist and unequal. That huge problem remained entirely unsolved. It is a matter of judgment to what extent it has been solved in 2005, for the New Orleans disaster revealed a picture of poverty and underprivilege that made most Americans shudder. But it is incontestable that the United States is a more integrated and just society than it was then, and in the past half-century it has demonstrated that it can absorb and integrate enormous numbers of people. Indeed, some of these immigrant communities-Koreans, Cubans, Lebanese, Vietnamese, for example-have proved among the most successful groups in the country’s history. They have helped to ensure that the American economy, with a few blips and pauses, has continued to expand over the past fifty years, bringing unprecedented material prosperity for the overwhelming majority of the population. The population, in turn, has grown steadily, now nearing the 300 million mark, and calculated to be about 400 million by the mid-21st century.