Quote:
Originally Posted by Lateralus
I was responding to a statement about what it would be like to live in the 1960s, and just wanted to point out that the US wasn't the only place in the world and existed and lived through radical change during that time.
I guess I'm also just sick of the US being portrayed as the center of everything and a lot of people thinking the America is the center of the world and everything revolves around them. Not you personally, just a general frustration.
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that's fair, but at the same time i have to wonder how many of the other protests and social movements from the 60s would have happened during that decade had it not been for the influence of the states and how they in turn handled their own issues.
how many protests would have really gone ahead had the attempt of the african american civil rights movement of the late 50s and early 60s failed? had the government chosen to react with force or simply ignored the demands of the people would it have really encouraged other idealists from across the globe to pick up a sign in protest? the 2nd wave of feminism?
it's hard to say really, it might have encouraged them even more, although in a time where questioning the hand that feeds was still very frowned upon and tv news were the 'be all end all' source of information for the newest news for most people, i think it would have been pretty simple to spin things in a way to keep the populace placated. it's not to say social reform would never have happened, i just don't think the 60s would have been as busy from that perspective.
instead precedents were set, new attitudes were embraced, and 'traditional values' had their validity questioned in regards to the modern world. and like it or not, that came from the states and it spread outward to any other democratic english speaking country out there for the most part.
while i abhor the mythologizing of woodstock and the hippie movement there's really no denying the social and cultural influence the states had on the world during that time. no matter how closely any other nation followed along they still weren't leading the pack.