ruth weiss and America’s New Groove
Before the Summer of Love, there was the Beat generation. Disillusioned by World War Two's ravages and the Cold War's apocalyptic undercurrent, a new bohemia emerged in the San Francisco zeitgeist, primarily in North Beach, where 24-year-old ruth weiss lived and performed. ruth weiss, along with other prominent members of the beat generation like Allen Ginsburg and Jack Kerouac, was a voice for a generation of young people. Due to shifting social, political, and economic forces post-World War Two, this generation was more independent-minded than any American generation who had preceded them, eager to shed oppressive ideologies and forge a new way forward. The beat poets bucked the pre-war moral codes and "consciously transgressed pervasive norms and practices." (1) The beats represented the beginning of a permanent ontological shift in American culture that resisted conformity and promoted truth and freedom.
ruth weiss performing at ruth fest in 2018. Photo from ruth weiss the beat goddess documentary
The ethos of the Beat generation resonated with many because of its diametric opposition to the military-industrial complex, which had grown substantially following World War Two and amidst the Cold War. ruth and her cohort subverted the power-hungry, inhumane, and profiteering goals of war by promoting borderless love, acceptance of all regardless of race, class, or creed, and valuing artistic expression over money. (2)
The infrastructure for the counterculture of the 1960s was built, in part, by the Beats of the 1950s, as their principles migrated and morphed with time. Many naysayers viewed the counterculture as a movement motivated by sex, drugs, and rock and roll. While these were significant aspects of the counterculture, its engine was staunch pacifism. Today, the spirit of the Summer of Love and the Beat Generation lives on, inspiring poets and artists worldwide to embrace a message of peace, love, and understanding. (3)
The ruth weiss Poetry Contest, established by the ruth weiss Foundation, seeks to carry on this legacy by inviting poets to submit work in the spirit of ruth's generation. As a Jewish child, ruth fled Nazi Germany, seeking refuge in the United States. As an adult, who had experienced the cruelty of war on children first-hand, she dyed her hair green because "War is bad for children." This year's theme, "War is bad for children. What is good for children?" invokes a dichotomy similar to the one between two pervasive moral codes of the 1950s and 60s. Whether you celebrate, eulogize, or something in between, we hope this prompt catalyzes a creative exploration. ruth weiss herself was a passionate advocate for children impacted by war, and we continue to celebrate her life and work for their contributions to the art of poetry and activism.
(1) Starr, C.R. (2004). "I Want to Be with My Own Kind": Individual Resistance and Collective Action in the Beat Counterculture. In: Skerl, J. (eds) Reconstructing the Beats. Palgrave Macmillan, New York
(2) (Chaires, Nancy. "Seekers of Truth: The Beat Generation." 1998 Literary Review (no. 12)).
(3) (Raskin, J. (2004). American Scream: Allen Ginsberg's Howl and the Making of the Beat Generation. University of California Press.
