Gypsies, Tramps and Thieves:Preface

[mitchtv]

Preface
Who we are is not important. What we are is. We are a few older Gay males still alive during the Plague years. Between us, we shared a collective memory of the Golden Era, the Magic Years in which we were grateful participants. No names have been changed of either the dead or the living, as there are no innocents to protect. We were not typical faggots, we were witches, magicians, drug addicts, thieves, rebels with and without causes, cross dressers, rioters, demonstrators, shit stirrers, and lovers. We wish to pass these chronicles on to you whomever you are. You will know if this material is meant for you. If you feel the call of the misfit, the outsider, the outcast, the damned or the doomed, listen.
Historical Backdrop
Kennedy, a liberal Catholic was elected President of the US in 1960. His short term is frequently referred to as the Camelot Years. The analogy will suffice. The nation had elected a young, kind emperor and empress. All of the oppressed peoples, Blacks, Women, American Indians, Gays, all felt impulse to coalesce and break down the old ways. Later the Vietnam War and the “free Speech Movement” galvanized large segments of the population, particularly the young, to challenge the dreaded and hated “system” Along with these provocative movements, a change as, as Bo Dylan said, “ blowing in the wind”. The times they were changing. We agree that something like magic, something like the ancient gods and goddesses were nearby, empowering the rebels. Exciting new and old drugs were discovered and rediscovered. Many of these substances were “mind altering “, LSD was brought into popular use. Long known other substances such as mescaline, peyote, and psilocybin, marijuana, hashish, opium, Kiif were used. Music was both a cause and an effect on the historical background. Always an agent for change it probably began with the folk protest music. Pete Seeger, Peter, Paul, and Mary, Leonard Cohen, Bobby Dylan, Joan Baez, Judy Collins, Laura Nyro, The Big Three, Buffy St Marie Simon and Garfunkle come to mind. As the years progressed the music both portrayed and provoked the change. “Unrest” was everywhere, from the Ivy League college campuses to city slums.

[orleans]

1. i was just checking back for something new, an update.

glad to find this.