ABSTRACT
In many ways 1967 was a microcosm of the struggle of the decade it divided, in the interplay between action and reaction, liberalisation and repression. Britain had finally passed the Sexual Offences Act (1967) so decriminalising homosexuality. The Abortion Act was also passed in 1967 after a lengthy campaign (‘The Right To Choose’) for safe and freely available abortion and contraception. The Times (London) published an advertisement advocating the legalisation of marijuana to which the Beatles were signatories. Even so, it is difficult to resist the argument that any doctrine that leads to greater freedoms of self-expression and individualism among the governed, but which is not sanctioned by the governors, will inevitably be suppressed. Regional drug squads were formed in March 1967 and LSD and marijuana were made illegal. In August, the Rolling Stones were arrested for possessing marijuana. Pirate radio was suppressed and raids on the International Times (IT) and underground music clubs reflected an increasingly repressive reaction by the establishment. By 1968 the counter culture was characterised by hippy anarchy and such sensationalised events as exorcising the demons from the Pentagon, nude grope-ins and joint-rolling contests. America, like Britain, reacted with punitive measures and Abbie Hoffman and Jerry Rubin were tried for conspiracy, the former being sentenced to five years' imprisonment.
