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Baby Boomers

Years Of The Baby Boomers

What are the Years Of The Baby Boomers?

The years of the baby boomers begin with their births between 1946 and 1964 when a record number of babies were born. This generation experienced the postwar peace and prosperity, the tensions of the Cold War, the triumphs of the space race, and the controversy of the Vietnam War. Now entering the retirement years, the baby boomers continue to have significant impact.

The years of the baby boomers began with a dramatic increase in the birthrate in 1946. For obvious reasons, the rate of births had been quite low during World War II when so many men were away at war and when couples were uneasy with having children during such stressful times. The birthrate went up by 22% in 1946 compared to what it was in 1945, and remained at this elevated rate through the year of 1964. The rate then dropped again in what has been called a “baby bust.”

The childhood years of the baby boomers were the 50's and 60's for the most part. This was a time of postwar prosperity and except for the Korean War years free from actual warfare until the involvement in Vietnam. The large number of baby boomer children created a demand for more and better schools at the same time that the civil rights movement was seeking to desegregate public schools.

So, what exactly are the Years Of The Baby Boomers?

There was the stress of the Cold War with the then USSR during the early baby boomer years. They saw a number of people who built underground fallout shelters in fear of the outbreak of a nuclear war and a sustained arms race with the communist countries. Boomers can often recall civil defense drills at school that involved hiding under desks to attempt to survive the blast of an atomic bomb, and many were old enough to remember the stark fear of the Cuban Missile Crisis.

 

The years of the baby boomers also included the space race and the ambitious goal to place a man on the moon before the end of the 1960's. They saw the goal realized when Neal Armstrong stepped out on the lunar surface in the summer of 1969. That year also saw the benchmark folk festival called Woodstock, an enduring emblem of the “peace and love” generation and their music.

 

The end of the 60's also brought the entry of the United States into the Vietnam War. This marked a period in which baby boomers established themselves as very vocal activists, whether in favor of or opposed to that war. A majority of baby boomers continued this activism for various causes through the present time, now focusing on issues such as abortion rights, environmental concerns and especially the issue of global climate change.

 

Baby boomers begin turning 65 at the start of 2011 at the rate of ten thousand per day. As the number of senior citizens rises sharply as a result, the years of the baby boomers as “golden boomers” will continue to play a major though changing role in American culture.