Counterculture Power

The 60's was a time of rebellion and counterculture in which younger people were questioning everything including corporations, authority, and the government. Some of the issues during that time were the Vietnam war, nuclear arms, civil rights, drugs, sexual freedom, the enviroment, and non-conformity. The movement made a change in American culture. The lifestyle included peace, harmony, love, mysticism, music, and religions outside of Christianity. Psychedelic drugs were used as a pathway to expand consciousness. A williness to challenge authority, enviromental awareness, and changing attitudes about gender roles and child rearing were also part of the movement. Utopian lifestyles, or communes were popular. Shared goals, farming, raising children and running households in longing for a simpler life was achieved. Many members of this counterculture saw their lives as a way to express social and political beliefs. Song lyrics, art and personal appearance, were used to make politicl and personal statements. "We are here to make a better world. We didn't end racism, but we ended segregation. We ended the idea that you could send half-a million soldiers around the world to fight a war people did not support. We ended the idea that women were second class citizens. We made the enviroment and issue that couldn't be avoided. The big battles that we won cannot be reversed. We were young, self-righteous, reckless, hypercritical, brave, silly, head strong, and scared half to dealth. And we were right." Abby Hoffman