Barefoot on streets during 1960s-70s?

I am wondering how prevalent is walking barefoot on the streets during the classical hippie era (60s). There is a lot of public perception that bare feet were more acceptable then but later people became squares and put shoes back on. However, from old photos it seem that most "hippies" during that time wore sandals or even heavy boots. Can any old hippie explain a bit on this?

 

I used to go barefoot a lot, but in the UK it gets a little cold around November. Also, I once trod on a broken milk bottle, which put me off. Another time I walked on the cliffs of North Devon to find I'd walked into a field full of thistles. Then there were increasingly dirty streets and stares from people if one did it in towns. But it was quite liberating to go barefoot in the summer in the county. Sandals are OK, but these days I wear shoes.

 

I guess it varied by location. I grew up in small Southern towns. I'm too young to remember much about the 1960's, but I know that in the late '70's and early '80's, it wasn't rare for me to see young single people without shoes, especially female, who didn't otherwise appear to be a part of the counterculture movement. At my college, sometimes people would go to class barefoot when the weather was warm, especially band class. Of course music, drama, and art students have always been more prone to push the limits than the average person.

 

What part of the country were you in at that time? No need to be specific, if you'd rather not.

Maybe our families were just out of sync. I grew up in a little later time period; my parents went through a little earlier than what you're talking about. My parents said that when they were young, it was rare for people their age to wear shoes in summer, except to church.

I don't think my mother's high school even had a gym. I know she didn't have to take gym class.

Ewww! :ack2: Don't they smell bad?

When I was going to gym class, everybody had to shower. The girls had individual stalls, so your peers only saw you in a towel. If it was warm weather and I had gym after lunch, most teachers didn't care if I didn't put on shoes afterward. All the guys thought that was really hot.

Now, I've heard that a lot of young guys want all girls, even strippers and prostitutes, to keep their shoes on all the time. I don't understand what changed.

When my sister and I were teenagers wanting to flirt on a Saturday night, our hottest and most popular outfits were halter tops, cutoff jeans, and no shoes. Most of the guys we flirted with had long hair, and most had beards. Some were hippies, but some were just hard rock fans. Not to say that the two groups didn't overlap; most of the rockers were also very anti-war. All of them seemed to be into drugs and sex, to some degree. The rockers just didn't like John Denver, or any of the other folk music that was anti-war and pro-environment.

 

Ah, that explains a lot! I grew up hearing now and then that people from places like Pennsylvania (and further north) made fun of Southerners for not always wearing shoes. I never figured out why I needed to care, so I didn't.

Girls more often wore Keds sneakers without the reinforced rubber toe, so those came apart much faster. They were considered much more cool after they had some holes and splits.

 

Remember Bass leather sandals, with the double straps? Those were the first comfortable ones (for women) that lasted a long time. I got into those in college. Before that, it was Keds (all canvas), Sperry Topsiders without socks, or nothing at all.

That seems like a hundred years ago now.

Moving back in the direction of the OP...

Stretching my memory to early childhood, the first thing I remember noticing about this particular situation was that the stereotypical hippies were the only ones to wear long blue jeans with bare feet. For the rest of us, if it was warm enough for bare feet, then it was warm enough for shorts or a short skirt.

 

Some people go barefooted at psytrance fests, especially on the dance floor. I never do, though I have been the one who crawls around on the dance floor during set-up to be sure no sharp rocks or whatever.

 

I loved my pair of elephant skin, made in India sandals. Wore out one pair and bought another. Bought them at the Plaka in Athens. Also loved my tan suede chukka boots. When I was hitchhiking through Amsterdam I bought a great pair of suede half-wellingtons that I wore until they literally fell apart. No one I knew went barefoot except on the beach.

 

I remember walking around NYC barefoot - would never do it again! Hawked up stuff, smoldering cig butts, glass on the sidewalks. Don't know why I did it - used to going to barefoot in the mountains maybe? or sheer rebelliousness? But growing up I just never liked the feeling of shoes confining my feet - still don't much.

 

burn down all the shoe factories!
lets see the shoes burn!

No one needs them all the time...

 

Well, kiddo, my claim to fame is that I was one of the original Haight St hippies of San Francisco (funny how that really does feel like a credit to me, lolol). Anywhoo, in SF it was only a focus when at concerts in the park, not on the street (and we usually bare more then our feet). Back in the day, we did any thing that made us feel close to nature, but concrete is not nature, so it was not a focus. Now some folk, flat out didn't have money for shoes, but I can assure you that one would have given them shoes in a hot minute, less they cut their feet on glass or due to hot concrete. Ah, those really were wonderful days, what I would give to have them back. lolo. You wouldn't believe, but those were unbelievable times, doors were never locked, you were always invite to a meal, no one was a stranger, really a magic time. Now though I look at what our generation has left you guys and I have immense guilt. ....we didn't catch the greed early enough, now its rampant.

 

saw a shel silverstein cartoon /hippie looking at one foot while leaning on a light post saying"they told me about the freedom of going barefoot but they didn't tell me about the broken glass and dog crap."

 

Workboots were the order of the day for the crowd I hung with.

Sturdy, safe, lasted along time

If I lived on a beach in Goa, it might have been different, but I lived on the east coast of Canada where we had broken glass, dog shit, spit on the streets and winter.

Psychedelics still worked with boots on. LOL