Rockin Hegemony: West Coast Counterculture

This counter culture that developed in the 1960s was an alternative lifestyle chosen by individuals who would eventually become known as hippies, freaks or long hairs (Richards, 2003). Members of the counter culture held a conviction similar to that of the new left wing movement, in that they wanted to overhaul domestic policy within the United States (MacFarlane, 2007). Hippies were generally dissatisfied with the consensus culture that had developed after the Second World War and wanted to distance themselves from American society hence the counter culture (Debolt, 2011).As a result,

Similarly, the counterculture fell in love with rock n’ roll as a symbol of protest and irregularity.

“Hippies were called Flower Children because they gave flowers to communicate gentleness and love” (Salge). The Hippie Movement was a popular counter culture during the 60’s-70’s. Hippies are best known for their practice of psychedelic drug use, interesting political views, where they took up living quarters, and their unique fashion sense.

The Anti-war movement started during the 1960s and shaped America’s public opinion on conflicts for years to come. As in all American conflicts, the will of the people controls the actions of the military. Without Homefront support, the American war machine dies. American pop culture during the 60s and 70s, sought to change public opinion against the Vietnam War. Through blatant Anti-war lyrics to their actions, the popular artists and musicians of the era changed the mindset of a generation to oppose the military actions in Vietnam.

In the summer of 1969, a music festival known as “Woodstock” took place for three straight days in Upstate, New York with thirty-two musical acts playing, and over 400,000 people from around the world coming to join this musical and peaceful movement. Woodstock started out being a small concert, created to promote peace in the world. Now, Woodstock is still being celebrated over 40 years later. This three day music festival represented the perfect concert for the “baby boomers” during a messy political time. Woodstock significantly impacted the counterculture era of the 1960’s in a number of ways; how it began, the ideas of the concert, the sense of union and love it represented and it

The “counterculture” developed during the 1960’s into the 1970’s and during this time period the American mindset questioned normal values and institutions. Over half the population was under 25, many of whom associated themselves with the Hippie Movement. Hippies were all about rejecting and rebelling against monumental societal institutions and were the focus group in the counterculture. The hippies set themselves apart from the “stereotypical man” and wanted to be untamed and wild. They valued the beauty in naturalness and stripping away “the securities of civilization that normally intervene between humans and elemental challenges (Nash, p. 267). They wanted independence and felt that the GNP was not the best indicator of American success.

Woodstock has come to mean more than just “three days of fun and music”; it

The counterculture movement started in the 1960s causing California to start another trend. The countercultural movement rejected the “Establishment’s” business-world values, and urged a mix of non-materialism, Asian religions, “free love,” and experimentation

The 1960s was a decade full of cultural, political, and social change in the United States that saw activism in the areas of civil right and anti-war ideals. It is remembered in history as a time where many ideas about counterculture permanently changed. It was the decade where African-Americans were passionately fighting for equal recognition, where young Americans who didn’t want to conform to the ideals of their elders created their own culture, and where average Americans began standing up against what they believed was an immoral war. The Civil Rights Act of 1964, the assassination of MLK, Jr., the Vietnam War, and the Kent State massacre are often discussed events from the 1960s and early 1970s. However, one area of American freedom and

The 1960's were a time of radical change in the society of America. A sense of liberalism could be felt though out the counting during the middle of the decade. The infamous Vietnam War and the new alternative culture were pushing the United States towards a time of liberalism and a nationwide rebellion against the social norms. The first combat forces were sent to Da Nang in 1965, by a formally anti war President, Lyndon B Johnson. The question of why the United States was engaging in a war between North and South Vietnam was raised. Anti war rebellions sprouted up all across the country, all asking the same question, “What are we fighting for?” This alternative culture started to develop though out America. Men, women, youth and

When one looks back on the frenetic 1960s, conservative sentiments aren’t usually the first thing to come to mind. Yet, while the New Left and the radical counterculture were reshaping cultural ideals, it was the New Right who emerged from the 1960s as a viable political force. The New Left can be categorized as a broad, largely youthful, movement with the goal to challenge various social norms and to institute a “participatory democracy”. Moreover, the New Left was “New” in a sense that they differed from the labor-centered liberal elites at the time; insisting on creating larger, more radical changes to society. On the other hand, the New Right was a largely grassroots movement aimed to restore traditionalist values from the “Eastern Establishment.” The New Right was “New” in a sense that it revitalized conservative hope at a time when those hopes looked mighty bleak. When analyzing the wildly different outcomes of the two movements, it becomes apparent that the New Right’s political-oriented manner to achieve their goals proved to be the decisive factor in maintaining long-term stability; something the confrontational New Left did not have the resources to achieve from the outset.

During the 1960s Music was heavily influenced by the political and social events happening at the time. At this time civil rights movements were common as many people were trying to spread the emancipation of racism and segregation. As a result the music of the time tended to reflect this counterculture of peace. This “culture” encompassed civil rights, anti-establishment and, inciting revolution. This was a vital time in history for civil rights activists as well as anti-war revolutionaries and the music industry. From folk music to rock music, everyone was affected by the war and chose to express it through the most international form of art, music. Anti-war activists and counterculture enthusiast craved the music that truly expressed

The “hippies” of the 1960s had many effects on the American society. The visual appearance and lifestyle of the hippies were in sharp contrast to the conservative nature of the older generation, which defined them as a counterculture. The hippie lifestyle was based on free love, rock music, shared property, and drug experimentation. They introduced a new perspective on drugs, freedom of expression, appearance, music, attitudes toward work, and held a much more liberal political view than mainstream society.

To understand the sixties counterculture, we must understand the important role of Bob Dylan. His lyrics fueled the rebellious youth in America. Songs such as “Blowin’ in the Wind” and “The Times are A-Changin” made him favorable to anti-war demonstrators and supporters of the Civil Rights movement. He was commonly hailed as the spokesman for his generation. Dylan used lyrics to allow the youth to find their own form of counter-culture. The youth generation began to see the effects racism, war, etc. effect the society in America. To combat this, the youth created their own form of counter-culture to promote a peaceful change within society. Some of their actions include forming anti-war protests that opposed America’s involvement in the Vietnam War, and supporting African Americans/women get the rights they deserve through the Civil Rights Movement. Bob Dylan’s music appealed to the young generation because he openly expresses his disapproval of the establishment in order to influenced his audience to move in a direction for change. Counterculture youth rejected cultural norms of the previous generation and their values and lifestyles opposed the mainstream culture present in the 1950’s. The folk music revival of the early 1960s, as well as the counter-culture movement played an important role in advocating change. Bob Dylan wrote songs that influenced the Civil Rights Movement, New Left Movement, and Anti-War Movement.

Influences of the Beat Movement can be noted in the next phase of American History: Hippie counter-culture of the 1960s. The Beat Generation was an important political catalyst for those minorities that had no voice. The “beatniks” of the movement were seen as a threat by those Americans that lived in the typical suburbs of American who tried to raise their children in morally upright ways (Silesky, 81).