Chicago Rage – Memoirs of a 1960s Hippy

Description

Where the dream of freedom collides with the fury of revolution.

Chicago Rage captures the restless, dangerous energy of the late 1960s through the eyes of Ronald J. Schulz, a seventeen-year-old runaway who rejects suburban conformity for the counterculture’s promise of love, rebellion, and revolution. From hitchhiking across the country to joining demonstrations in Chicago, Schulz’s memoir pulls readers into the passion and chaos of a generation unwilling to stay silent.

Set against the backdrop of Vietnam War protests, Weatherman rallies, and communes both idealistic and dysfunctional, Schulz recounts his journey with candor and fire. Alongside wild companions and fleeting romances, he struggles to balance spiritual exploration with political rage, chasing liberation while facing the dangers of violence, disillusionment, and the inexorable pull of adulthood.

Highlights include:

• Firsthand accounts of street battles during the 1969 “Days of Rage” in Chicago.
• Life inside communes where free love, spirituality, and rebellion intertwined.
• A candid portrait of the idealism, contradictions, and intensity of the hippie movement.
• A personal journey through love, loss, and the fight to belong in a changing America.

Frank, fearless, and brimming with the spirit of the times, Chicago Rage is more than a memoir—it’s a time capsule of the 1960s counterculture and a reminder of the costs of chasing revolution.