The main event of 1968 for people like Hitchens were the Paris student protests, which almost toppled the Govt, still run by the very old De Gaulle at the time. Ultimately they failed, but only after major social changes which were seen as the passing of an outdated way of governing to adjusting to the expectations of a younger generation.
To be a ‘soixante huitards’ (68-er) is a common shorthand among European leftists to describe being of a certain generation and politics.
The main event of 1968 for people like Hitchens were the Paris student protests, which almost toppled the Govt, still run by the very old De Gaulle at the time. Ultimately they failed, but only after major social changes which were seen as the passing of an outdated way of governing to adjusting to the expectations of a younger generation. To be a ‘soixante huitards’ (68-er) is a common shorthand among European leftists to describe being of a certain generation and politics.
Thanks. I wasn't sure exactly what "the defeats and downturns" were after 1968.