1970: If the environmental movement can be said to have a birthday, this is it: The first Earth Day is celebrated.
The 1960s was a dynamic decade for the cause of conservation, fueled by the growing awareness of what human beings were doing to their planet.
There are actually two Earth Days, one held to coincide with the vernal equinox and this one, the inspiration of U.S. Sen. Gaylord Nelson (D-Wisconsin), an environmental activist. Modeling Earth Day on the effective Vietnam War protests of the era – and, in fact, the first Earth Day included an anti-war component – Nelson’s celebration drew more than 20 million participants in its first year.
The practical effect of Earth Day was to awaken politicians to the fact that environmentalism had a serious constituency. A slew of environmental legislation followed, among them the Clean Air Act.
Coincidentally, April 22, 1970 also marked the hundredth anniversary of Vladimir Lenin's birth. Or perhaps not coincidentally, to some conservatives who decided environmentalism was in bed with the Kremlin. One member of the Daughters of the American Revolution was quoted in Time magazine: “Subversive elements plan to make American children live in an environment that is good for them.”
Oh, the horror.
(Source: Wikipedia)
