The movement

About this book

The phenomenon we called the New Left is over. For something over a decade it flourished and made the Western world livelier and more exciting. Obviously the political left has not ceased to exist entirely. There will always be a left and a right so long as we continue to live by the political terms of the modern world. These terms were established by the French Revolution, that complex upheaval that also marked the emergence of a modern West as we know it. Until the influence of that great Age of Revolution has dissipated, we shall use "radical" and "radicalism," "left" and "right" as key terms to measure and define the political environments of modern nations and political systems. Yet, as a distinct phase of the radical assault on Western Establishments, the New Left has dwindled away and in the United States, at least, has ended. The New Left that emerged during the period from 1959 to 1962 was a well-defined phenomenon. Socially it was distinguished by its middle-class personnel, most of its members being university students or young professionals. The youthfulness of the New Left set it apart from the radical movements of America's past. Previous American radical movements had been led by adults with youth affiliates or auxiliaries trailing behind. Now, for the first time, young American men and women led an autonomous movement for social change without the supervision and control of middle-aged veterans. - Introduction.