ABSTRACT
This chapter focuses on cultural production and the events of 1968 in Europe and the United States. It suggests that momentous year as part of the broader political trajectories of the Global Sixties and the global connections between events, localities, and movements. By the mid-1950s tens of thousands had come to work in the region's oil fields. Some were internal migrants from other areas of the Arabian Peninsula or the Gulf region. The chapter argues that the long 1960s were a period of epic political struggles and dramatic social, political, and economic changes in the Gulf and the Arabian Peninsula. In some countries, such as Saudi Arabia, the workers' movement went hand in hand with the entry into government of a number of leftists and otherwise "progressive" officials. The decisions made during that era, and the strategies used to defeat those dreaming of and fighting for a Red Arabia, would have long-lasting consequences for the region and the world.
