perspectives on counterculture

Underground Press

The Vietnam War accelerated social unrest and activism. Young people were demonized for their long hair, their colorful clothes and their revolutionary
music. The image in the lower left corner depicts one of many cases when the
National Guard was called in to control a vocal but peaceful protest. Hundreds of people were arrested and hurt over the years through this overzealous policing.

In the face of rapid social change, the mainstream press was at a loss.

To express this new voice, people started their own publications: Paul Krasner with The Realist, John Schuttleworth with Mother Earth News (still in publication today) and the all-time outrageous publication San Francisco Oracle which started in 1966. See also some great headlines from the L.A. Free Press. The Whole Earth Catalog, initiated by Stuart Brand, was first conceived as a tool to put in touch communes and back-to-the-landers and form a parallel economy. These are now valuable collectibles.

In the center right, the book Small Time Operator became the go-to manual for many back-to-the-landers who were new to business and needed tools to develop their plans.