Beyond the Tie-Dye: Counterculture in Champaign-Urbana, 1965-1975

An hour-long documentary that focusing on counterculture movements in Champaign-Urbana from the 1950s to the present day, with a concentration on the 1960s and 1970s.

The history of counterculture is a broad and multi-dimensional topic. Political aspects include organized protests against laws, policies, and cultural practices, teach-ins, the activities of student and community organizations (for example, Students for a Democratic Society), and programmatic changes (such as Project 500 at the University of Illinois).  Cultural aspects concern how people worked to change their daily lives through decisions about food and shelter, work and leisure, relationships with people and the environment, clothing, music, and other lifestyle choices.  To explore both the political and the cultural dimensions of counterculture movements, the program takes into account events occurring on the University of Illinois campus, as well as in the Champaign-Urbana community.