1967: The Year of Change

The Human Be-In

En español | About 10,000 counterculture (and pro-LSD) activists gathered in San Francisco’s Golden Gate Park on Jan. 14 for a celebration that effectively put the area on the map as hippie central. It was a precursor to the city’s Summer of Love.

McNamara Reversal on War

Secretary of Defense Robert S. McNamara wrote to President Lyndon B. Johnson in May that the U.S. campaign in Vietnam had been largely ineffective, and suggested peace talks. Johnson didn’t pull back — and antiwar protests abounded.

Ali Won’t Fight

In April, heavyweight champ Muhammad Ali announced his refusal to serve in the Army. “I ain’t got no quarrel with those Viet Cong,” he said. He was stripped of his title and banned from boxing for three years.

A Strike Against Racism

In June, the Supreme Court declared interracial marriage constitutional in the landmark case of  Loving v. Virginia. It featured the case of Mildred and Richard Loving, a black woman and white man who were prosecuted after marrying.

Summer of Anger

Detroit’s 12th Street Riot began on July 23 after police raided an unlicensed bar full of black patrons. Fueled by racial tensions, four days of looting and violence left the city shattered.

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Justice in the Supreme Court

Thurgood Marshall was sworn in as the nation’s first black Supreme Court justice on Oct. 2. He served as a champion for civil rights for 24 years before retiring in 1991.

Public Broadcasting Is Born

On Nov. 7, President Lyndon B. Johnson signed a law creating the Corporation for Public Broadcasting, with an aim to support programming “in the public interest.” This led to the creation of the Public Broadcasting Service (PBS) and National Public Radio (NPR).

‘Rolling Stone’ Hits the Stands

Rolling Stone, founded in San Francisco by Jann Wenner and Ralph Gleason, published its first issue in November. The biweekly magazine showcased music and political reporting, and was hugely influential in its early years.

Here’s to You, Mrs. Robinson

The film The Graduate premiered in December, a brilliant satirical drama featuring Dustin Hoffman as the young graduate who’s both seduced by an older woman and repulsed by the values of his parents’ generation

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