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14
THE 60's
up steam in 1963. Over 200,000 dem–
onstrators marched on the White House
in the nation's biggest demonstration to
date for civil liberties.
In 1964, another element began to
enter the racial situation - that of
Negro violence and rioting in the
ghettos of America's big cities. Racial
violence swept ghetto sections of New
York City, Rochester and Philadelphia.
In 1965 racial tensions in the United
States exploded in the disastrous Watts
riot in Los Angeles, California. The
ugly scene was repeated nationwide in
1966 and 1967.
In April, 1968, a sniper's bullet felled
Martín Luther King in Memphis, Ten–
nessee. Angry outbursts erupted in 125
cities in 29 states and the District of
Columbia. Property damage soared into
the scores of millions of dollars.
In 1969 there was a quieting of racial
tensions - at least on city streets. But
the race issue moved indoors onto col–
lege and university campuses and was
behind much of the turmoil in educa–
tion.
Outlook for thc 1970's: According
to Dr. Ralph
J.
Bunchc, undersecretary
.of the United Nations, racial problems
promisl! very serious trouble for the
future of not only the United States
but of the entire world. "I am fearful
about the future," he says, ".. . becanse
race is a major if not dominant factor
in international affairs."
Natural Disasters
Sorne of the worst calamities in his–
tory left their imprint on a puzzled
humanity during the Sixties.
In February, 1960, two earthquakes
struck Agadir, Morocco, setting off a
tidal wave aod fire which destroyed
most of the city, killing from 10,000 to
12,000 people.
In June, 1960, an awesome series of
temblors devastated a vast coastal area
of Chile, killing 5,700, changing geog–
rapby and spawning tidal waves which
swept the Pacific, killing over 200 in
Hawaii , Okinawa and Japan.
The
PLAIN TRUTH
Tbere were many other major quakes
during the decade. Hundreds were killed
and hundreds of thousands were made
homeless by earthquakes around the
world.
Hucricane patterns changed during
the decade, spreading devastation over
wide areas. Hurricanes caused bilJions
of dollars of damage in the U. S. alone.
Unheard-of tornado activity also
ripped the U. S. in areas rarely touched
before. In April, 1965, 37 tornadoes
on Palm Sunday smashed through Iowa,
lllinois, Wisconsin, Michigan, Indiana
and Ohio killing 271, injuring 5,000.
Major tornadoes also struck the Mid–
west in successive years from 1966
through 1969.
The Sixties saw numerous other
natural disasters.
Severa! droughts afflicted various sec–
tions of the world. A five-year drought
parched the northeastern U. S., causing
water to be rationed in New York
City.
Cydones and tidal waves periodically
smashed into the Far East, especially
East Pakistan, killing 5,000 to over
10,000 at a time. Flash floods hit the
Barcelona area in Spain (September,
1962), killing hundreds; and Jtaly,
Hong Kong, and South America suf–
fered from floods at various times.
In October, 1963, an avalanche of
earth and rock caused the Vaiont Dam
to burst, destroying Longarone, Italy,
and nearby hamlets, killing an estimatcd
1,800.
Volcanoes still suddenly erupted, tak–
ing a deadly toll in lives: Agung vol–
cano (March, 1963) on Bali killed an
estimated 1,500; Mt. Taal in the Philip–
pines (September, 1965) killed over
180.
When viewed in retrospect, nature
was far from quiet in the Sixties. We
can safely expect the same for the ne>.1:
decade. And in addition, experts on the
environment are saying that global pol–
lution, especially of the atmosphere, may
have far-reaching, deleterious effects on
world weather patterns.
Rebuilt Man?
In the world of medicine the greatest
breakthrough was in the field of organ
and tissue transplants - both human
and artificial.
january,
1970
Wíde World
Photo
Use of the plastic artificial hea rt,
wos one of medicine's major
ochievements during the decade,
olong with heart transplants and
other types of sophisticated sur–
gery.
On December 3, 1967, Dr. Christiaan
Barnard, in South Africa, made the
world's first human heart transplant into
the chest of
Louis
Washkansky. He
lived 18 days and died. But a new era in
medicine was boro.
Around 150 or so heart transplants
took place during the decade. Only a
score or so patients are still alive, the
vast majority failed to survive six
months. The body's natural immunity
rejcction response cootinued to baffle
doctors. The longest-surviving heart
transplant recipient, Dr. Philip Blai–
berg, died 19% months after his oper–
ation.
During the decade sorne 250,000
people had plastic veins, heart valves
and other plastic substitutes inserted
into their bodies. Heart "pacemakers"
containing built-in batteries,
oc
with
wires connected to batteries outside the
body, became quite common.
With such achievements as human
kidney transplants, cornea transplants
and other forms of sophisticated sur–
gery, it was hoped the Era of Rebuilt
Man would soon become a reality. How–
ever, heart transplants opened up a
whole new controversia! field of moral,
ethical, legal, medica! and psychological
problems still in debate.