Society During the Cold War

Youth of the 50's and 60's

Society During the Cold War

The post WWII baby boom resulted in an extreme number of young people during the 50's and 60's. In the 1960's youth all over Europe started what was known as "Counter Culture". Despising authority the teenagers of the time held rebellions against parents as well as the status quo. Teens started the trends of the time, the most important being rock music and drug use. Money was no issue and fear of being fired over disobedience was practically nonexistent with so many jobs being available at the time. New means of mass communication allowed the youth of the world to connect with one another like never before. In Paris, May 1968, the Paris University was shut down by the police because of authority issues with the students. The students from the University as well as other supporters gathered to protest the closure. Over 20,000 supporters marched to the school but were violently suppressed by the police. The school finally reopened later on that month after several weeks of protest.

Social Classes During the Cold War

In between 1945 and 1970 social classes in Europe changed for the better. The new need for engineers and scientists, as well as a rise in available white collar jobs, allowed access to higher education no matter your social standing which created a dramatic increase in the number of people that were considered middle class. The social class structure became less rigid over time and tensions between classes decreased as people of all social standings began to cooperate with each other.

Consumer Culture

Women in the 1960's

During the Cold War the standard of living improved dramatically, providing working men and women with larger amounts of disposable income. During the Cold War Europe experienced the "Gadget Revolution", which was a period of time in which a significant number of gadgets such as vacuum cleaners, washing machines, televisions, stereos, refrigerators, and dishwashers had been purchased. These items had previously been far too expensive for the middle class if they had been available at all. A rise in installment buying helped support these purchases. The European automobile industry also grew during this time as well as the travel industry as paid vacations became mandatory.

Women in the 1960's had very strong opinions as well as an important place in society. After World War II, paid jobs for women to do at home practically disappeared. Because of this the percentage of women who began working outside of the home grew rapidly in the 50's and 60's. The large amount of out of home working women caused the birthrate to drop dramatically and the average family consisted of only two children. With so many women in the workforce, a second wave of women's rights began in the 1960's, fighting for equality in the workplace, maternal leave with affordable daycare, the right to divorce, and protection against physical violence.

Society During the Cold War

In between 1945 and 1970 European society changed dramatically. Consumer culture was shifting to conform to the better living standards that came during and after the Cold War, offering more technological gadgets to purchase and more travel options as employees began earning paid vacations. The middle class rose and tensions between classes decreased. Youth began to fight against authority and for the second time women fought for their rights. Today's society and culture is greatly influenced by the changes that Europe experienced in between 1945 and 1970.

Image by Tom Mooring