Not all Americans were enthusiastic about the moon landings. For the minorities in America the moon landings were a stark reminder of where the Governments priorities lay. Click below to read the article in magazine format or scroll for a text only version.
Whitey’s on the moon – Text only version:
As we celebrate the 50th anniversary of the first moon landing, it is perhaps natural to picture America as a nation united behind this brave and noble quest. However, in reality this was very much a story of division and resentment.
In January 1961 John F Kennedy declared that an American man would walk on the moon by the end of the decade. It can be argued that the main motivation for this declaration was less about science and discovery, but more about the Cold War between the USA and Soviet Union. After the Cuban missile crisis, tensions between the world’s superpowers were at breaking point and the Soviet Union had beaten the Americans to reach key landmarks in the race to the moon.
Gallup polls seem to indicate how nostalgia has altered public support for the Moon landings. In 1979 only 47% of Americans surveyed felt that the lunar landings had been worthwhile. Yet a similar poll in 1989 showed that 77% felt that the landings represented value for money.
Throughout the 1950’s and 1960’s a majority of the American population were opposed to the lunar mission. At one point fewer than 40% of those polled supported NASA’s endeavours. There were two brief surges in support for the lunar missions. The first occurred after JFK was assassinated in 1963 which inspired a collective wish to fulfil his dreams and send a man to the moon. Second, public opinion did briefly swing in favour of the lunar missions when Apollo 11 reached the moon – but this support soon faded.
But this sentiment was not exclusive to the general public – many scientists expressed concerns at the level of funding that was being dedicated to the space race. According to a survey in 1963 of every $3 spent on research and development in the United States, $1 was spent on defence, $1 was spent on NASA and only $1 was spent on every other field of science combined – including public infrastructure, energy, private industry and medical research.
But Kennedy’s administration soon faced an even bigger domestic crisis through the growing Civil Rights Movement. The campaign to overturn the segregationist laws that had denied equal rights to African American citizens had been gathering steady momentum during the 50’s and 60’s. While NASA was developing the Gemini and Apollo craft, activists like Elijah Muhammad, Malcolm X and the Reverend Martin Luther King Jr were building their influence and their campaigns received national and even international support and recognition.
On 23rd march 1965 The Gemini 3 completed an orbit of the Earth with two astronauts, Grissom and Young on board. The launch followed one month after the assassination of Malcolm X.
The launch of the first Saturn V rocket in November 1967 occurred at the end of a year of race riots that claimed the lives of thousands of mainly black civilians throughout Florida, Minneapolis, Detroit, New Jersey, New York, Milwaukee, Arlington and Washington DC. Many of these riots occurred after peaceful protests were met with violent resistance by the police.
When the Apollo 6 mission blasted off on 4th April 1968 it was the first time the Command Module had been manned in space. Astronauts McDivitt and White spent 10 hours and 56 minutes floating above the Earth. While NASA was watching the sky, the world was watching the news as word spread of the assassination of Martin Luther King.
The anger and resentment that was felt by the poor and disenfranchised of American society is largely forgotten by today’s historians whose narrative portrays a collective will to succeed.
This sentiment is perhaps best expressed in the work of Gil Scott-Heron who released an album of spoken word songs in 1970. Gil was an outspoken activist and his album titled “Small talk at 125th and Lenox” a name derived from one of the poorest New York neighbourhoods were many immigrant and African American families lived in squalid conditions.
Tracks including “The Revolution Will Not Be Televised” and “Whitey’s on the Moon” were representative of the frustration, despair and anger that was shared among millions of Americans living in abject poverty while the government spent billions of dollars chasing a dream. A dream that was being funded at the expense of so many.
Whitey’s On The Moon
By Gil Scott-Heron
A rat done bit my sister Nell
With whitey on the moon
Her face and arms began to swell
And whitey’s on the moon
I can’t pay no doctor bills
But whitey’s on the moon
Ten years from now I’ll be payin’ still
While whitey’s on the moon
The man just upped my rent last night
Cause whitey’s on the moon
No hot water, no toilets, no lights
But whitey’s on the moon
I wonder why he’s upping me?
Cause whitey’s on the moon?
Well I was already giving him fifty a week
With whitey on the moon
Taxes take my whole damn check
Junkies make me a nervous wreck
The price of food is going up
And as if all that shit wasn’t enough:
A rat done bit my sister Nell
With whitey on the moon
Her face and arm began to swell
And whitey’s on the moon
Was all that money I made last year
For whitey on the moon?
How come I ain’t got no money here?
Hmm! Whitey’s on the moon
Y’know I just ‘bout had my fill
Of whitey on the moon
I think I’ll send these doctor bills
Airmail special
To whitey on the moon.
