Music Of The 60s

13 Pages 3282 Words

ere was a common ground that all involved knew of and that was music. A great contributor to the start of and a way in which all in the movement could feel as one, music became a driving force in the revolution and literally the “music was about power?3 The music of the era did a lot of defining and upholding as well; in fact, it was a driving force, or at the very least a strongly supporting force, in many of the movements that took place. However, it is to be expected that in attempting to change a nation one will inevitably face opposition.
The Vietnamese weren’t the only ones involved in a civil war those years; in America, one could easily find brother turning against brother, or more commonly, parent against child, as each side fought to defend their views. The 1960’s were a major turning point in the history of the U.S, and when it was all over, the American way of life would never be the same. Almost seventy years before the sixties even began segregation was legalized. As long as both races had “equal?facilities, it was entirely legal to divide them.4 In 1955, however, an elderly black woman by the name of Rosa Parks refused to give up her seat on a bus to a white man and as a result of her actions she was arrested. Parks later proved to be the true catalyst of the anti-segregation movement. When news of the arrest reached the black population, action was taken immediately. A massive bus boycott was organized, during which time no one of color could be found on a bus in the Montgomery area. Finally, in 1956, a law was passed proclaiming that any form of segregation was illegal and immoral.5
Unfortunately, not everyone was eager to embrace this change. Many whites felt that if they were forced to share, they would rather go without. Across the country, public recreational facilities were locked up rather than integrated. In Birmingham, Alabama in 1962, for example, sixty-eight parks, thirty-eight playgrounds, six ...