Counter-culture vs. mainstream

1. Counter-culture vs. mainstream

2. 1960s Counterculture?

3. The Hippy Movement • The term “hippy” comes from being hip. You were either hip or you were a “square” or a “pig.” • Hippies were looking for an alternative way to live life. • Most hippies valued freedom, nature, intimacy, peace, sharing, and spirituality.

4. Mainstream Culture • The postwar era of 1945-1960 was a time of amazing econ growth & prosperity for millions of Americans • 4 concepts typified Mainstream America: • They were verypatriotic(“America: Love it or leave it.”) • Theybelieved in the institution of marriage(You fall in love, you get married.) • Theybelieved in theAmerican Dream(Work hard and you can have a good life) • Theybelieved conformity kept society ordered (fashion, jobs, behavior, etc)

5. The Counterculture • 6 ideas typified this movement • Communal living • Experimental Drug Use • Scandalous Fashions • Political Activism • New Music Styles • Sexual liberation/revolution

7. Way of Life • Hippies wanted to distance themselves from mainstream ways of life. • They discarded possessions and often lived in parks or campsites in the woods. • Living like this made them feel free • Nudity was another form of freedom

8. San Francisco and Haight Ashbury • San Francisco was the birthplace of the counterculture/hippy movement. • By 1965 hippies had taken over the Haight Ashbury district. • Haight Ashbury district contains Golden Gate Park home of the Trips Festival and “be-ins.” This is a 20,000-strong be-in at Golden gate park in 1967

10. Experimental Drug Use • For many youth, drug use was an important part of rebellion & personal freedom • While marijuana was most popular, the mind-altering LSD(lysergic acid diethylamide) or “acid” was increasing in use. • As drugs grew in popularity, newspapers & schools pointed out the increasing numbers of youth dying from drug overdoses

12. Counterculture Fashion • Hippies distanced themselves from mainstream culture by their dress. • Colorful, flowing clothing, beads, headbands bellbottoms, and tie-dye were popular. • Men their hair and beards long or in afros. • Hippies were often called “longhairs”

14. Political Activism • By late ’60s, the TV was showing images of long-haired protestors marching against the Vietnam War • Some were confrontational- burning the flag, cursing & goading police or Nat Guard troops • Others were interested in making a peace statement- marching in silence, carrying peace signs, placing flowers in the barrels of govt troops to prove their pacifism

16. New Music Styles • The folk, pop, & rock music of the 1960s also challenged mainstream values. • In ’69, these elements all came together at a farm in NY at the Woodstock festival. More than 500K people came together to camp out, take drugs, engage in free love, & listen to rock

17. Woodstock

19. Sexual revolution • The ’60s saw a revolution in the realm of human sexuality. • The Counter Culture called for “free love” or casual sex. • Medical advances, like the birth control pill, made sexual activity without fear of pregnancy easier. • Soon the country was seeing the effects of this “new freedom”- women went braless, movies showed sex b/t men and women, & songs made explicit references to sex • It should also be noted that the gay rights movement began as a result of this new freedom • There was also an incredible rise in STDs &, despite improved birth control, illegitimate children born

20. References • Wikipedia.com • “The Hippy Generation” by Adam Huber http://users.rowan.edu/~lindman/hippieintro.html • “What did the hippies Want?” By Alicia Bay Laurel • Interview with Terry Brown (my mom) • Pictures from Google images: Search: Hippies