In the 1960’s there were so many changes to America’s culture. Drugs were a big part of this as many of the teens from this time period saw their idols using drugs.

Before the 1960’s, the number of people who used drugs was very few. The baby boomers were really the first to start major use of drugs. With the baby boomers there were the hippies and the soldiers that went off to war.

The hippies started experimenting with the drugs as a way to find more freedom. They liked the changes marijuana provided them. When they took marijuana they limited their ability to do many things. It made them not able to think clearly and make good judgments. Marijuana increased their sensitivity to colors and music. When you take this drug it is very hard to stop use of it. Many people became addicted.

In Vietnam, the soldiers would also use drugs. Potent amounts of marijuana were found there. The soldiers would use the drugs as a way to escape the problems of the war. The marijuana would ease and comfort them. Many of the soldiers would bring the marijuana back to the states after they left the war.

Another drug that was widely used in the sixties was LSD. LSD stands for Lysergic Acid Diethylamide. LSD in the sixties was actually legal to use so many people took it. People thought that because LSD was legal that they weren’t doing anything wrong and that they wouldn’t get hurt. People became addicted to LSD. When the people who took LSD became addicted to it, they started having many of the same problems that you would have if you took marijuana. Including not being able to think clearly.

One of the reasons that these drugs and others became so popular is because during the sixties, magazines such as LIFE reported news coverage on them. When the teens saw LIFE magazine reporting on them they thought it was alright and a cool thing to start taking these drugs. The teens didn’t understand the big deal with these drugs so they experimented with them to see what they were all about. Many of the teens became hooked.

During the 1960’s many subcultures started to develop. These subcultures believed that drugs made a positive influence on themselves and others. They believed that they needed to "Turn on" drugs to others. People saw these subcultures as a superior group. The people in the subcultures were a powerful force in recruiting young people to use drugs. In the 1960’s the majority of the people who were drug abusers were between the age of twelve and twenty-five.

In the 1960’s many important people died because of their use of drugs. Janice Joplin and Jimmy Hendrix were just two of them. These two people were great musicians. Unfortunately their drug addictions became too much for them to handle. The singer and musician used many hard drugs such as LSD.

The sixties were a time of great change to our country. Many famous people died. Many young kids thought it was cool to be like them and take these drugs. Drugs really weren’t cool and they didn’t help anyone.

"1960-1970." This Fabulous Century. 1970.

"Drug Abuse." Grolier. Version 6. CD ROM. Grolier Publishing Co., 1993.

Holland, Gini. A Cultural History of the United States: Through the Decades. The 1960’s. San Diego: Luant Books, Inc., 1999.

Murray, Nicole. Online. Available http://orpheus.la.utk.edu/music/resources/rock/discuss/drugs/Nicole Murray3.59PM.html accessed 2 March 2001.