Springfield and Summit Libraries to Jointly Present "The Counterculture of the 1960s and 1970s, with John Groom

Join us at 7:00 PM on Wednesday, July 12, when John Groom offers a presentation about the counterculture movement during the 1960s and 1970s.

It was only after World War II that residents of the USA and the developed world began to appreciate that they were living in a period of change much more rapid and profound than at any previous time. Religion, mobility, fashion, music, nuclear weapons, the widespread use of the contraceptive pill, generational “gaps” and recreational drugs are just some of the areas where change occurred. The counterculture was characterized by the opening up of minds to experimentation with new ideas and practices. This presentation will trace counterculture development and evaluate the way literature, journalism, communications, music, the family, and other aspects of life reacted to the impetus for change in the 1960s.

Presenter Paul Groom was born in Liverpool, England in time to experience the 1960s and its explosion of cultural life. He remembers a world prior to the Beatles. Paul lived in the same “village” as John Lennon and George Harrison, went to the same high school as Paul McCartney and George Harrison, the same Sunday school as John Lennon, and lived similar experiences to the Beatles everyday lives. He also witnessed the 1960s developments which became known as the “Counterculture” as society adapted to the new realities of post-World War II life.

The program will be online via Zoom. In order to receive the link, Springfield Library patrons need to register in advance athttps://summitlibrary.libcal.com/event/7579803