The Legacy of the Sixties

Abstract

In many parts of the world, the 1960s seemed to herald radical change. “1968” is celebrated—or abhorred—as a year of revolution. The student protests in Paris and hopes that the Prague Spring would bring “socialism with a human face” continue to shape our recollections of that year. That historical memory is strengthened by parallel events in other parts of Europe and the momentous developments in communist China, the United States, and Mexico in a year that would symbolize a decade.