Thoughts on the 60s?

Question

Were the 60s a decade of positive social change or a decade of excess and violence?

Answer 1

Having lived through the 60s the answer to your question is "yes". Violence? Oh yes! In an era we supposedly remember for "Make love, not war" and "Give peace a chance" (Lennon) it was a decade notable for its violence. One need only think of the assassinations of JF Kennedy, ML King, Robert Kennedy, Malcolm X to begin with and there was so much more death and destruction in the War in Vietnam and within the entertainment industry. Death haunted everyone who lived and breathed in the 1960s.
Yet, in the midst of this, or perhaps as a manifestation of it, the 60s were also a decade of the emergence of an entire array of 'movements' from the Civil Rights movement to the Women's movement, from the Black Power movement to the Native American movement, from the ecological movement to the free speech movement, from the Mexican-American grape boycotts to the campus movements, from conservative religious movements to liberal religious movements. Add to this the development of rock 'n roll and advanced cineamatography, color television and on-location news and you have a truly remarkable decade.
The 60s were contradictory in a great many ways. We remember it for the peace movement but it is most noted for war; we remember it for sex, drugs and rock 'n roll and liberal causes but it was equally notable for the emergence of the conservative right.
Choose your idea, and chances are it was either begun or received significant development in the 1960s.

Answer 2

Both. A lot of social changes started back then because "we" brought them to the forefront of consciousness--a lot of people in middle-America were not aware of a lot of the social problems in this country and the young people's involvement and concern started to make a difference. Note, I said "started" because it was like pushing a huge boulder, had to start very very slowly. Ethnic, social, gender, age, etc. problems were focused upon and pointed out and small changes were started and have continued to grow (maybe not as fast or prolifically as hoped), the ecology was suddenly a topic of interest whereas before almost no one worried about it. But as with everything, there are always going to be those who go to extremes and abuse the good things. And people are violent no matter what--has nothing to do with the era though. There is never going to be a time when all you have is "good." If you lived in those days, and if you partook of those times, I think it changed your life one way or another--basically I would guess for the better. It opened a lot of minds that would otherwise have remained closed, made you question the way things had been done so far, made you want to know more about things outside your small little realm.

Answer 3

Well, both are arguably true. However, I would say that the positive gains outweigh the violence; civil rights for minorities, women's rights, the beginnings of gay rights, less social structure and increased mobility, the start of the environmental movement, the peace and anti-nuclear movements and...not least..the coming of age of the Boomers.

On the other hand, if you have thoughts about the 60s, you probably weren't really involved in it.

Answer 4

IMO, positive social change. People stood up and protested a war that, the general public felt, was wrong, women gained more Independence, discrimination was called on the rug, etc.....