I have little interest in streamlining government or in making it more efficient, for I mean to reduce its size. I do not undertake to promote welfare, for I propose to extend freedom. My aim is not to pass laws, but to repeal them.
Barry Goldwater, The Conscience of a Conservative, 1960
If by a "Liberal" they mean someone who looks ahead and not behind, someone who welcomes new ideas without rigid reactions, someone who cares about the welfare of the people — their health, their housing, their schools, their jobs, their civil rights, and their civil liberties — someone who believes we can break through the stalemate and suspicions that grip us in our policies abroad, if that is what they mean by a "Liberal," then I'm proud to say I'm a "Liberal."
John F. Kennedy, speech accepting the nomination of the Liberal Party of New York, September 14, 1960.
In the year AD 1960...
- In the U-2 Incident, Soviet surface-to-air missiles shoot down American U-2 spy plane pilot Francis Gary Powers, leading to the cancellation of the Paris Summit at which Soviet Premier Nikita Khrushchev was planning to make major arms reduction commitments in the pursuit of a lasting peace between the US and the USSR. Instead, a new round of hostility and recriminations begins and Cold War antagonisms deepen.
- Millions die in China as the food shortages caused by Mao's disastrous "Great Leap Forward" policy continue for a third straight year.
- Massive protests break out in Japan against the passage of the revised US-Japan Security Treaty which allows the US to continue maintaining military bases in Japan. The protests ultimately force the resignation of Prime Minister Kishi Nobusuke and the cancellation of a planned visit by President Eisenhower.
- In the April Revolution, massive pro-democracy protests across South Korea lead to the collapse of the Syngman Rhee regime.
- Large-scale protests in Turkey against a rigged election and the suppression of free speech induce the Turkish military to overthrow the government and establish a military junta, while promising to return to democracy in the near future.
- John F. Kennedy is elected the 35th President of the United States, defeating his Republican opponent, Richard M. Nixon, by a slim margin of only 118,000 votes in the 2nd closest presidential race of the 20th Century.
- The eight-year Mau Mau Rebellion in Kenya finally comes to an end after the British Parliament accepts the "one person, one vote" formula for Kenyan elections.
- Four black students from North Carolina Agricultural and Technical State University stage a famous sit-in after being refused service at a Woolworth's lunch counter, triggering similar non-violent protests throughout the American South.
- In the Sharpeville Massacre, police open fire on a crowd of black protesters in Sharpeville, South Africa, killing 69.
- Nigeria and Zambia gain independence from the British Empire.
- Cameroon, Côte d'Ivoire, Chad, the Republic of Congo, and the Central African Republic gain independence from France. Civil war breaks out almost immediately in the Congo as the states of Katanga and South Kasai attempt to secede.
- The Organization for Economic Co-operation and Development (OECD) is established among free, rich nations.
- Iran, Iraq, Kuwait, Saudi Arabia, and Venezuela unite to form the petroleum export cartel OPEC.
- The United States launches the first successful weather satellite, TIROS-1.
- Sputnik 5, carrying dogs Belka and Strelka, 40 mice, two rats, and several plants becomes the first satellite carrying living beings to successfully launched into orbit and recovered safely.
- The futuristic planned city of Brasilia is officially inaugurated as Brazil's new capital city.
- Construction begins on Egypt's massive Aswan High Damn.
- C. Wright Mills helps launch the 1960s student movement with his "Letter to the New Left," which is also the origin of the oft-used moniker "New Left."
- Arizona Senator Barry Goldwater ignites the modern American conservative movement by publishing his manifesto The Conscience of a Conservative.
- Harper Lee first publishes her novel, To Kill a Mockingbird.
- A rock band called the The Beatles forms in Liverpool, England.
- Dr. Seuss first publishes his legendary children's book Green Eggs and Ham.
- In one of the most memorable home runs ever hit, second baseman Bill Mazeroski wins the World Series for the Pittsburgh Pirates with a walkoff blast against the New York Yankees in Game 7.
- The farthing, in constant use since the 13th century, ceases to be legal tender in the United Kingdom.
These people were born in 1960:
These people died in 1960:
Several memorable films appeared in 1960, including:
These television shows began airing in 1960:
These memorable songs were recorded in 1960:
1959 - 1960 - 1961
20th century