Final answer:
The urban uprisings in the late 1960s, including the 1964 Harlem Riots and the 1965 Watts Riots, were sparked by underlying issues like discrimination in healthcare, employment, and housing. They were further fueled by the perceived ineffectiveness of the Great Society programs and the civil rights movement to bring about tangible improvements in the lives of African Americans, leading to a surge in more radical movements such as Black Power.
Step-by-step explanation:
During the late 1960s, the United States witnessed several significant urban uprisings. Notably, in 1964, riots broke out in Harlem, and in 1965, the Watts neighborhood in Los Angeles was the scene of another major riot. These disturbances were driven by underlying causes such as poor healthcare, insufficient job opportunities, substandard housing, and systemic discrimination in urban African American communities.
Two underlying causes of these uprisings were the frustration over racial injustice and the failure of existing civil rights movements and the federal government to alleviate the suffering and discrimination faced by African Americans.
The riots often targeted symbols of oppression, such as stores that refused to hire black workers and properties of landlords who neglected or exploited their tenants. These acts of rebellion were part of a broader struggle for racial equality and social justice during a period marked by social unrest, questioning of American political ideals, and profound questioning of the status quo.