The Day the 60s Died

Gr 9 Up—According to this documentary, the dream-filled peace and love attitude of the 1960s ended in May 1970, when the confrontational student protests at Kent State (OH) ended in gunfire and the deaths of four students. About half of the program focuses specifically on the university—with ample archival news footage, home movies, and photos—and present-day interviews with students and national guardsman who were present during the protests. Along with the Kent State coverage, the film examines campus protests against the Vietnam War and President Nixon's decision to send troops into Cambodia. There is some wartime footage, as well as interviews with men who were then young soldiers. The even-handed political coverage presents the student/protester perspective and that of many older, often white, and working-class Americans who felt the students were disrespectful of the opportunities they had been given. The ending presents a thought-provoking discussion point: Did the lessons learned and the energy put into motion by the antiwar protests fuel the women's, gay rights, and ecology movements later in the 1970s?