Cultural Rebellions of the 1960s

Cultural Rebellions of the

1960s

Influences

• Everything You Always Wanted to Know About Sex (But Were Afraid to Ask) By Dr. David Reuben
• It had a profound effect on sex education and in liberalizing attitudes about sex
• The research team of William Masters and Virginia Johnson pioneered the research of human sexual responses and disorders

The Pill

• The FDA approved the first oral contraceptive in 1960, and within three years of its release, more than 2 million women were on the pill
• Although it is considered a symbol of the Sexual Revolution, it also was part of a political agenda
• A part of Johnson's Great Society was to eliminate poverty, and this was an aid to guard against overpopulation
• It is argued that the pill enabled women to marry later, and therefore invest more time into careers and education
• It increased college attendance and graduation rates for women

Effects

Influences

Popular Slogans

Sexual Revolution

• "Make love, not war"
• "Do your own thing"
• "Whatever turns you on"
• "Eight miles high"
• "Don't trust anyone over 30."
• "Turn on, tune in, and drop out."
• "I am a human being- please do not harm, bend spindle, or mutilate."
• "Sex, drugs, and rock 'n' roll"
• "Light my fire"

• The Pill helped control family sizes, and also made it easier for women to work outside the home
• Women were also more in control of their bodies and didn't have to worry about an unplanned pregnancy
• The feminist movement was a direct outgrowth of the Sexual Revolution
• It also contributed to clothing that was more revealing, such as lower cut tops, mini skirts, and bikinis
• Since the Sexual Revolution, STDs, teen pregnancies, out-of-wedlock births, and divorces have all increased markedly

• Hippies were influenced by the Beat writers from the 1950s
• Their views were also inspired by many events of the time period, such as the Civil Rights movement, and the Vietnam War
• Singers and songwriters such as Bob Dylan, Phil Ochs, and Joan Baez offered their own critiques and opinions about the time that inspired the movement

Drug Use

• The most common drugs that were experimented with at this time were Marijuana and LSD
• Other drugs included heroin, mushrooms, and various types of pills
• With the upsurge of recreational drug use, the number of venereal diseases, bad trips, and drug addictions also increased

Counterculture

• The Sexual Revolution of the 1960s paralleled the counterculture present at the time, and was a major factor in that movement
• The release of "The Pill" enabled people to be more carefree about their lives and allowed the hippies to have "free love"
• Although the term "revolution" implies widespread and radical change, many traditional views were still held by a majority of people.
• The preexisting climate of change meant that the time was perfect for challenging social norms

War Protests

Psychedelic Rock

• The counterculture was marked by a growing distrust of government, which included anti-war protests
• People were known to burn their draft cards, move to Canada, or fake a medical issue to avoid being sent to Vietnam
• Thousands of war protests throughout the decades included marches, sit-ins, rallies, and teach-ins
• The protest of the war was not exclusive to the counterculture. People of all ages participated, but the counterculture got publicity for its outrageous displays.

• Often referred to as "hippies," these young adult baby boomers criticized what they saw as a culture of conformity from their parents' generation
• They were generally anti-establishment, and often sought the creation of a utopian society
• They also advocated for peace and were extremely opposed to the Vietnam War, which came to define this decade

• Developed in the Haight-Ashbury district of San Francisco
• Bands like The Doors, The Grateful Dead, and Jefferson Airplane made this type of music popular with subversive lyrics, electrically enhanced guitars, and association with drugs

"3 Days of Peace and Music"

• One of the key events that came to define the hippie movement was the Woodstock Music Festival in Bethel, NY from August 15-18, 1969
• Performers included: The Grateful Dead, Joan Baez, and The Band; as well as Crosby, Stills, Nash, & Young; and 29 other performances

Context in 1960s Society

• Although the counterculture movement is considered a major defining factor of society in the 1960s, it included no more than 10% of the youth population
• The majority of the members of the counterculture were white and middle class
• Most young Americans sought careers and educations similar to those parents, and young educated people actually supported the Vietnam War more than older, uneducated Americans

Politics During Vietnam War

Food

• Two major groups with two different viewpoints:
• Hawks: pro-war politicians who argued that if the US didn't intervene, it will only get worse. (Very prevalent during early stages of war)
• Doves: anti-war politicians that claimed if the US entered, it would just escalate the situation. (Very prevalant towards end of war)

My Lai

Effects

• One of the most lasting changes made by the movement was in the American diet
• Health food stores emerged and sold such things foreign to the 1950s diet such as yogurt, wheat germ, and granola
• Vegeterianism also became very popular and is still extremely prevalent

• Throughout the '60s and into the '70s, more counterculture ideas and ideologies became mainstream, such as long hair, different styles of dress, folk-rock music, vegetarianism, and pre-marital sex
• The counterculture movement also provided a necessary platform for the Sexual Revolution to take hold

• My Lai was a Vietnamese village where there was rumored enemy activity and U.S troops were sent to neutralize.
• A battle took place and the aftermath was disastrous
• 100 enemy soldiers were killed and the village filled with 350 civilians was completely decimated along with its inhabitants.
• When this was found out over a year later, the public was outraged over the cover-up and demanded to be out of the war and Congress became dominated by doves rather than hawks

Tet Offensive

Newspaper breaking the news of the My Lai Massacre

The Media and the Vietnam War

Televised News

Walter Cronkite,

"Most Trusted Man"

Coverage of War

Closing of the War

• On the Vietnamese New Year, North Vietnamese Troops marched down to the south, burning the U.S. embassy and other political landmarks, killing many U.S troops
• Officially, this was actually a U.S victory but due to its publicity and showing of citizens dying, it was received horribly by the public.
• It also suprised the public, who were led to believe previously that the Communists were not able to launch such a large-scale offensive
• This was known as the turning point of the U.S's involvement in the war, and of good publicity for the war.
• Prior to the Tet Offensive, on averagethe news covered about four positive stories about Vietnam and zero negative, and afterward there were 2 positive and 14.5 negative stories.

• After Nixon's election, the media realized there was nothing left to cover on this war and coverage dropped from 90% to 60%
• Instead, the media now focused on all the anti-war protests and riots and that became the new main subject
• The actual coverage of the war that was still showed went from being 48% of actual combat to only 13% after 1970
• One of the leading stories at this point was the trial of Lt. Calley who was responsible for the My Lai Massacre

In Conclusion

• Vietnam is one of the most infamous wars because it was the first ever publicized war shown to the people extensively
• Because of this, there was no way to censor what was shown so people were shown everything
• Although the US generally had victories in the war, media was its downfall
• This was a major learning experience for the U.S because now people knew the horrors of war. It also taught people that there should be some censorship during war because the opinion of the public can make or break involvement of a country in any armed conflict.

• The revolutionary invention of the television made distributing news much easier
• Rather than having something happen and seeing it in the newspaper the next day, the spread of the news would be almost instantaneous
• Walter Cronkite, known as America's most trusted man, was a news reporter who worked for CBS Evening News and worked on stories like Vietnam, and the assassination of JFK.
• Anything that he said could curve America's opinion on anything, which is what happened during Vietnam.

• In 1965 Vietnam had an 80% approval rating.
• By the end of 1967 the approval rating had dropped by 40%
• This was the first ever televised conflict, and it showed the ruthlessness and brutality that is involved in war.
• There was no censorship to what journalists could write so it was very detailed