Say “Summer of Love” and so many images come to mind — “far out” lingo, tie dye and flower power, San Francisco’s Haight-Ashbury district, the Human Be-In at Golden Gate Park where you’d sway to local bands like the Grateful Dead and Jefferson Airplane. But for a time and place that changed a generation, it’s amazing just how fleeting all this was. From what seemed like endless possibilities for 30,000 or so hippies converging on San Francisco, to total collapse in about 10 months. All amid intense political discord over the Vietnam war, heated civil rights battles and what devolved into hard drug abuse. American sociologist, political writer, novelist, and cultural commentator Tod Gitlin called all this a cyclone in a wind tunnel. In other words, too volatile not to self destruct.
But what if you took this cyclone of hippie spiritual seekers and draft dodgers out of the charged American wind tunnel of political and racial strife at the time. And what if you transplanted a piece of it into a remote idyllic British Columbian town — what would all this look like some 50 years later? Listen in and find out…
Podcast: https://www.northamericanapodcast.com
Facebook: @northamericanapodcast
Twitter: @north_podcast
Instagram: @northamericana
See images, get links to insider travel tips and resources for everything in Episode 3 on our show page. Also, hear Breena’s travel tips for Nelson and more of her mom’s amazing stories from the San Francisco’s Summer of Love.
Stuff You Should Know
If you've ever wanted to know about champagne, satanism, the Stonewall Uprising, chaos theory, LSD, El Nino, true crime and Rosa Parks, then look no further. Josh and Chuck have you covered.
CrimeLess: Hillbilly Heist
It’s 1996 in rural North Carolina, and an oddball crew makes history when they pull off America’s third largest cash heist. But it’s all downhill from there. Join host Johnny Knoxville as he unspools a wild and woolly tale about a group of regular ‘ol folks who risked it all for a chance at a better life. CrimeLess: Hillbilly Heist answers the question: what would you do with 17.3 million dollars? The answer includes diamond rings, mansions, velvet Elvis paintings, plus a run for the border, murder-for-hire-plots, and FBI busts.
Dateline NBC
Current and classic episodes, featuring compelling true-crime mysteries, powerful documentaries and in-depth investigations. Follow now to get the latest episodes of Dateline NBC completely free, or subscribe to Dateline Premium for ad-free listening and exclusive bonus content: DatelinePremium.com