Families In The 1950s Essay

Families change throughout the centuries, each conforming to society or breaking away from societal norms. In the 1950s, most families followed the “cookie cutter” way, which means many families were the same. Compared to today’s families, one can say that families have become very different from what they used to be. In today’s society, we have families that are bi-racial, having either gay or lesbian parents, having a single mother of father; these types of families were not as popular in the 1950’s. Families during the 1950’s were traditional and most families conformed to society. During this century families were created at a young age. According to statistics, the median age for a first marriage was 22.8 years old for men and 20.3 for women (Rich, Unknown). Once one was married, then he or she would have to stay with the person he or she married. Divorce is considered a stigma in the society of the 1950’s (Rich, Unknown). Since families were created at a very young age, women who were in college dropped out. “In fact, Lynn White, president of Mills College said that …show more content…
The 1950’s was an eye-opening experience for many black Americans. “For example, in 1954, in the landmark Brown v. Board of Education case, the Supreme Court declared that “separate educational facilities” for black children were “inherently unequal.”(History.com Staff) This not only affected black families but also white families. For white families, they did not want to accept Brown’s ruling and were unyielding to accepting black families. “They withdrew their children from public schools and enrolled them in all-white “segregation academies,” and they used violence and intimidation to prevent blacks from asserting their rights” (American Anthropological Association, 2007). The families that suffered the most in the 1950’s are black families because of the cruelty from white America