The events of 1968, particularly those in France, have achieved a mythical status in both the memory and the historiography of the 1960s. For some, 1968 marked the end-point of a realignment of the European ‘New Left’. For others 1968 represented a student generation in revolt, and many of the first accounts which sought to explain the history and meaning of ’68 were written by that generation.
More recently historians have tried to demythologise ’68, looking both at less ‘glamourous’ locales and at the deeper histories of anti-colonial struggles and worker activism prior to the events of that year. The aim of this conference is to explore the diverse histories of social activism and left politics in Britain and elsewhere, and how they prepared the ground for and fed into ‘1968’. Themes might include, but are not limited to:
• Anti-nuclear & peace movements
• Civil Rights struggles
• The Black Power movement
• Anti-colonial politics
• The activities of the Labour movement and the ‘traditional’ Left
• The grassroots activism of the ‘New Left’
• Far Left challenges: Trotskyism & Maoism
• Campaigns around housing and the built environment
• Campaigns around race and discrimination in the workplace and housing
• Solidarity movements with struggles abroad (e.g. South Africa, Vietnam)
• Campaigns for Homosexual Equality
• Second Wave Feminism
We are seeking papers of 5000 to 10000 words on any aspects of left activism and social movements in the period preceding 1968 to be presented at the conference.
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