Conspiracy Theories Ion 1960s to Explain Assassinations Essay

Conspiracy Theories Ion 1960s to Explain Assassinations

The concept of conspiracy theories was not anything new in the 1960s within the wider American society or even I other regions of the world. However, in the 1960s there was an increased trend in the assassination carried out particularly within the U.S.A. With this increase in assassinations of great leaders within the U.S.A. In this period, there were more attempts than ever before to try and explain the cause of the rampant assassinations and majority of these were linked to conspiracy theories.

The increase in the conspiracy theories at this time was a clear indication of a clear belief in the cause being the increased class struggle and stratification that was getting worse in this period. The 1960s saw the emergence of class struggles with more pressure groups and civil societies forming an actively participating in the politics and social life of the U.S.A. more than ever before. The increase in the pressure groups was not only a clear indication of the class struggle, but also of the awareness by the society about the social stratification and strained power relations that was evident in the society and this was a source of concern.

The social stratification involves people being classified and the classification is ranked according to the superiority-inferiority scale. According to Harrison et.al (2008), this classification in terms of the superiority-inferiority scale implies that the more powerful will be at the superior scale and this implies that the superior members of the society will inevitably control the vast of the resources within the society.Harrison (2008:97) indicates that there are various characteristics that can be used for classification within a nation and those involve race, gender, ethnicity, lineage, fighting prowess among many other factors. He however notes that the most important classification aspect in a modern society is the role that one plays in the economic system. This is one of the explanations behind the increase in the conspiracy theories in the 1960s upon subsequent assassinations of leaders. Every time a leader would be assassinated, due to the social stratification, there would be dire need by various groups and investigators to look at the level of economic control he had and hence link the death to competing economic forces.

During this time, there were also vast changes in the social fabric and people were viewed more by the way they made their living and the control they had over the lives of others, and not by the social participation of an individual as the anthropologists realized. This meant competing interest within the American society at this time where every other group wanted to have the influence over the life of others hence the assassinations of people deemed to be commanding control so that….....