Interview

What were the biggest differences between the 1960's and today?
I would say some of the biggest differences were the presence of segregation, the discrimination against women in the workforce, and there was a lot of social unrest.
What was segregation like?
Whites and blacks were not integrated.  They went to different schools. To give blacks an equal footing, the government started busing blacks to white schools and whites to black schools.  Some people didn't want their kids bussed so they sent them to private schools.  As blacks moved into white neighborhoods, the whites would leave; and they slowly became black neighborhoods.
What were the main events of the social unrest?
In 1963 Kennedy was killed.  Then Martin Luther King was killed. There was also the Cuban missile crisis.
What was the Cuban missile crisis like?
It was as close to war as you want to come. Everyone was thinking it would start world war three.
What were your opinions on the Vietnam War?
Coming from Germany and having lived during WWII, I don't think they should have started the Vietnam War.  I knew we could not win.  I also remember when the war was over, people treated the soldiers horribly.  They spit on them and called them names.