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RPM 101: Recreation and Leisure
Unit 3 Section 1: Early History of Recreation and Leisure
UNIT OBJECTIVES AND OVERVIEW
This unit covers the following objectives:
1. Identify and discuss the major events, social trends, and religious influences on
recreation and leisure during the following historical periods:
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Ancient Civilizations
Early and Late Middle Ages
The Renaissance
The Protestant Reformation
The Colonial Period
The Industrial Revolution
The Early Twentieth Century
The Great Depression
World War I and World War II
2. Discuss the growth of popular recreation and the changing attitudes toward play
following the Industrial Revolution.
3. Identify the social trends that brought the growth of commercial amusements.
4. Identify the public concerns about the use of leisure in the early part of the twentieth
century.
5. Compare and contrast leisure in Puritan New England and the Southern Colonies.
6. Discuss the early conservation movement and the establishment of municipal, state,
and national parks.
7. Identify the major forces that promoted recreation services in the early part of the
twentieth century.
8. Discuss the role of the schools in the provision of recreation and leisure services.
9. Discuss the societal impact of the Great Depression and the ways in which recreation
was used during that time.
10. Discuss the ways recreation and leisure were impacted by World I and World War II.
The unit is divided into two sections (sections 1 and 2). Each of the parts contains online
lectures and assignments to go with each lecture.
Overview
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In order to provide a complete picture of the recreation and leisure-service field, it is
necessary to fully understand how the field has evolved throughout time. As a
community-based field, the profession has undergone dramatic changes throughout
history. From history we can identify customs and values that influence contemporary
social norms while developing a more complete understanding of the place of recreation
and leisure in society throughout time.
Part 1 of this unit begins with the earliest known forms of leisure and play in the ancient
civilizations of Egypt, Assyria, and Babylonia, and takes the student across time and the
globe to America in the years following World War II. While moving from era to era,
you will explore the prevailing religious and social beliefs of the time period, and
understand how those values impacted recreation and leisure at that time. The unit
concludes as America moves into the postwar decades, at a time when recreation and
leisure services were firmly established in the United States.
You will find from your readings that leisure, play, and recreation are strongly influenced
by the social norms of an era, and some of those social norms still exist today. Therefore,
understanding the social norms of the different eras and how they are manifested in
recreation, play, and leisure can make professionals in the field more aware of the social
norms influencing the field in the present. As you read, jot down the prevailing social
norms of each era as you will be asked to connect these in one of your assignments for
this unit.
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Part 1: Leisure in Ancient Civilizations
The early history of recreation and leisure is a rich tapestry of people, places, events, and
social forces that depict the role of religion, education, and government and the customs
and values of different cultures, their arts, sports, and pastimes.
Relatively little is known about the nature of leisure and play during the prehistoric
periods. However, in tribal societies, play was utilized for many reasons, including to
depict historical events, to enact religious rituals, and to prepare soldiers for warfare.
Recreation and Leisure in Ancient Civilizations
Ancient Egypt. Ancient Egypt possessed a varied class structure with a powerful
nobility and military class and lesser classes of workers, peasants, and slaves. This
civilization is richly recorded in painting, statuary, and hieroglyphic records. They
engaged in many sports as part of education and recreation, including wrestling,
gymnastic exercises, and ball games. Bullfighting, music, drama, and dance were forms
of religious worship and social entertainment.
Ancient Assyria and Babylonia. These civilizations had many popular recreation
activities, such as boxing, wrestling, archery, and a variety of table games. They also
enjoyed watching dancing, listening to music, banquets, and royal hunting parties.
Ancient Israel. Music and dancing were performed for ritual purposes as well as for
social activities and celebrations. Dance was highly respected and was used for
celebration and triumph. Hebrews also engaged in hunting, fishing, wrestling, and the
use of weapons such as the sword and javelin for recreational and defenses purposes.
Ancient Greece. The Athenians took great interest in the arts, in learning, and in
athletics. These pursuits were generally restricted to wellborn, aristocratic noblemen.
The balanced man was considered one who was a soldier, athlete, statesman, and
philosopher. The craftsmen, farmers, and trades-people had limited rights and less
prestige. Young children enjoyed toys, dolls, skip ropes, seesaws, etc. Boys were taught
to prepare for the military through participation in running, leaping, wrestling, throwing
the javelin and discus, dancing, boxing, swimming, and ball games. Greeks believed
strongly in the unity of the mind and body and felt that play was essential to the healthy
physical and social growth of children.
Ancient Rome. Roman citizens were required to fight in wars to defend their society, so
they participated in sports and gymnastics intended to keep the body strong and spirit
courageous. Although young Roman children engaged in many of the same sports and
games as the Greeks, the Romans supported play for utilitarian rather than aesthetic or
spiritual reasons. They built baths, open-air theaters, stadiums, parks, and gardens.
WEBLINKS: The following links provide descriptions of several Roman games and
leisure activities, which were popular during the early history of recreation and leisure.
http://www.personal.psu.edu/users/w/x/wxk116/romeball.html
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http://www.personal.psu.edu/users/w/x/wxk116/roma/rbgames.html
VIDEO: The Romans like to play hard. This included activities like gladiatorial
combats and chariot races. Click here to see a video clip of the brutal chariot race from
the 1925 version of Ben-Hur. This scene became infamous for its treatment of animals.
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Part 2: Leisure through the 19th Century
Early and Late Middle Ages and Renaissance
Many aspects of Roman life were forbidden during the Early and Late Middle Ages. The
stadiums, amphitheaters, and baths that were prevalent in Rome were destroyed. The
Roman emphasis on leisure was replaced by a Christian emphasis on work.
The Renaissance. The term renaissance means rebirth and describe the revived interest
in the scholarship, philosophy, and arts of ancient Greece and Rome that developed at
this time. Power shifted from the church to the kings and their noblemen. Artists were no
longer dominated by the ideals and values of the Catholic Church, but were free to serve
secular goals. A wave of music and literature swept through the courts of Europe, aided
by the development of printing.
Play as Education. Various forms of play became part of the education of the youth of
nobility, such as physical exercises and games, singing, dancing, modeling and painting,
and nature study.
Development of Parks and Recreation Areas. Three major types of large parks came
into existence during the late Renaissance, namely royal hunting preserves or parks, the
ornate and formal garden parks, and the English garden parks.
Protestant Reformation. The Reformation was a religious movement of the 1500s that
resulted in the establishment of a number of Protestant sects whose leaders broke away
from Roman Catholicism. The “Protestant work ethic” that emerged during the
Reformation led to periods of strict limitations on leisure and recreation. However, such
activities as sports and games, music, dance, the theater, and gambling persisted, even
under the stern condemnation of the new Protestants.
The Colonial Period
English and other European settlers came to the New World with a primary need for
survival, including to plant crops, clear forests, build shelters, and in some cases defend
themselves against hostile enemies. Thus, work was more important than anything else.
There was little time, money, or energy to support leisure and recreational pursuits.
However, the most important hindrance to the development of recreation was their
religious attitudes.
Restrictions in New England. Idleness was detested as the “devil’s workshop,” and
many colonies passed laws to curb amusements such as drunkenness, idleness, gambling,
playing cards, non-religious music, and dancing. Despite these restrictions, many forms
of play continued, including football.
Leisure in the Southern Colonies. Sabbath day dancing, fiddling, hunting, fishing, and
card playing were banned in Virginia. However, gradually, these strict restrictions were
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reduced. The upper classes had money and leisure from their large estates and
plantations.
The lifestyles of slaves in the colonies were very different from the lavish lifestyles of
their owners. Music and dance were an integral part of their culture. Dance was
associated with religious and cultural celebrations. Storytelling was also important for
passing history from one generation to the next. Slaves worked 14 hours per day or
more, six days a week, leaving minimal times for leisure.
Decline of Religious Controls. The lottery was introduced in 1700s to increase revenue
to build canals, turnpikes, and bridges, so it was considered an “acceptable” form of
gambling. Bundling was permitted where engaged couples were allowed to sleep
together through the night, separated by a low wooden board. Taverns were widely
established by the early part of the 18th century where men enjoyed drinking and playing
billiards, cards, skittles, and other games.
Conservation Efforts. In the design of the new cities, the colonists began to give
attention to the need for preserving or establishing parks and open spaces. For example,
cutting trees without official consent was prohibited by law, as well as setting woods on
fire or cutting certain types of trees.
Although originally a means of obtaining food, hunting rapidly became a sport in the
colonies.
Impact of the Industrial Revolution on the Recreation Movement
The Industrial Revolution was a time when a wave of immigration came from Europe to
the New World. Industrialization changed the way people lived and had a major effect
on recreation and leisure. Leisure was more freely available to all people (as opposed to
primarily the elite).
With the invention of new machinery, mills, factories with mechanical power, weaving
machines, and the steam engine drastically increased output production.
Urbanization occurred as there was a steady shift of the population from rural areas to
urban centers. People immigrated to the cities to work for a variety of reasons, including
crop failures, expulsion from their land, religious or social discrimination, or political
unrest.
Rural townspeople and foreign immigrants moved into congested tenement areas of
growing cities, living in quarters that were crowded, unsanitary, and unsafe. Residents
were oppressed by low wages and recurrent unemployment and by monotonous and
prolonged labor, including the use of young children in mills, mines, and factories.
Availability of Leisure
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With industrialization, the average working day climbed from 12 hours in 1700 to a 14to 18-hour day in 1800. By 1850, the average workweek in French cities was about 70
hours. The number of holidays each year also sharply decreased.
Gradually, pressure by trade unions and industrial legislation improved the situation. The
hours of labor were limited by law to 10 per day in 1847, 9 hours per day between 1869–
1873, and by 1919 the 8-hour day was formally adopted.
The puritan ideal, which glorified work and condemned leisure and play, became even
stronger due to the Industrial Revolution. As industrialization became more widespread,
there was a renewed emphasis on the importance of hard work and strong opposition to
play.
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Part 3: Growth of the Recreation Movement
Growth of Popular Participation in America
The first half of the 19th century saw a gradual expansion of popular amusements in the
United States. For example, the theater, which had been banned during the American
Revolution, gradually regained popularity in cities. Large theaters were built to
accommodate larger audiences. Additionally, drinking remained a popular pastime.
Most men went to taverns in staggering numbers.
There was also a growing interest in sports at this time from watching amateur wrestling
matches, shooting events, and horse races to the professional promotion of sporting
events (e.g., boating regattas, horse racing, prize fighting, and amateur teams of baseball).
Changing Attitudes Toward Play
During the last half of the 19th century, the Industrial Revolution was flourishing with
factories and railroads; expanded urban areas; free public education; improved health
care, life expectancy, working conditions, and levels of pay; and a decrease in the hours
of work. Children, who had worked long hours in factories, mines, and sweatshops, were
freed of this burden through child labor laws. Gradually, the climate grew more receptive
and accepting of play and leisure.
There was a growth in popular amusements, such as music, vaudeville, theater, and
dance. Sports expanded leisure participation with increased interest in tennis, archery,
bowling, skating, biking, and team games, such as football, baseball, and basketball.
Intercollegiate sports competition in rowing, baseball, track, and football was organized.
Track and field events were widely promoted by amateur athletic clubs. Other activities
included croquet, archery, lawn tennis, and roller-skating. Women began participating in
gymnastics, dance, and other school athletic programs. Outdoor recreation also became
popular in the late 19th century, with Americans enjoying hiking, mountain climbing,
fishing and hunting, camping in national forests and state parks, and nature photography.
Growth of Commercial Amusement
In larger cities, new forms of commercial amusement grew and expanded during the 19th
century, including the theater, amusement parks, dime museums, dance halls, shooting
galleries, bowling alleys, billiard parlors, beer gardens, and saloons. There were also
cities with “red light districts” where houses of prostitution flourished. As one might
imagine, drinking, gambling, and commercial vices became serious social problems.
WEBLINK: One of the most famous places of amusement in 19th century America was
P.T. Barnum’s American Museum in New York, one of the original “dime” museums.
Barnum would later go on to found his famous circus, but the American Museum,
designed to provide entertainment for the working class, was the most visited institution
in the city in its time.
http://www.freakatorium.com/history.html
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The Recreation Movement
The recreation movement describes forms of leisure that are provided in an organized
manner by social agencies, either governmental or voluntary, with the intent of achieving
desirable social outcomes. Four major roots of the recreation and park movement
include:
1. the establishment of city parks, beginning with New York’s Central Park, and the
later growth of county, state, and national parks
2. the growing interest in adult education and cultural development
3. the appearance of playgrounds for children, sponsored first as charitable efforts
and shortly after by city governments and the public schools (e.g., Boston Sand
Garden)
4. the development of a number of nonprofit, youth-serving organizations that
spread throughout the country (e.g., YWCA, YMCA, Hull House, etc.).
There was concern about the reckless and haphazard course of urban growth in the 19th
century, which had been guided almost exclusively by narrow commercial interests.
Reformers were disturbed not only by the obvious “social failures”—the growing number
of criminals, prostitutes, alcoholics, and insane—but also by the effects of the relentless
commercial environment on the culture of cities. Large public parks came to be seen as
“necessary institutions of democratic recreation and indispensable antidotes to urban
anomie.”
During the early 20th century there was a growth in public recreation and park agencies as
the concept that city government should provide recreation facilities, programs, and
services became widely accepted. The federal park system also included many new
forest preserves, historic and scientific sites, and wildlife refuges.
Pioneers in the Emergence of the Recreation Movement
Several men and women emerged as influential advocates of play and recreation during
the first three decades of the 20th century. The most effective were Joseph Lee, Luther
Gulick, and Jane Addams.
Joseph Lee. A lawyer and philanthropist, Lee is regarded as the “father” of the
playground movement. He surveyed play opportunities in Boston and was shocked to see
boys arrested for playing in the streets. He organized a playground for them in an open
lot and created a model playground. He was President of the Playground Association of
America for 27 years and also president of the National Recreation School. His book,
Play in Education, discussed his belief that play had to be taught and thus required
capable leadership.
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Luther Gulick. A physician with strong religious orientation, Gulick was First President
of the Camp Fire Girls. He assisted with the establishment of the Playground Association
of America, and promoted expanded recreation programs for girls and women.
Jane Addams. Jane Addams was the social work pioneer who established the Hull
House in Chicago. She had strong interest in the needs of children and youth and the
lives of immigrant families and the poor. She developed outstanding educational, social,
and recreation programs.
While these three individuals fought to help the poor and illiterate immigrant families
who lived in crowded urban slums, they also used recreation to maintain and enforce
traditional values. Play and recreation were used to “Americanize” foreigners and protect
the heritage that dominated the national culture.
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Part 4: Major Forces Promoting Organization Recreation Services
Popular culture gained momentum during the Jazz Age of the 1920s, with college and
professional sports, motion pictures and radio, new forms of dance and music, and other
crazes capturing the public’s interest. There were several forces that sought to guide the
American public in what they regarded as constructive uses of leisure.
Growth of Voluntary Organizations. A number of important youth-serving, non-profit
organizations were formed locally and nationally. Examples include:
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National Association of Boys Clubs
Boy Scouts
Camp Fire Girls
Girls Scouts
Rotary Club
Kiwanis Club
Lions Club
Playground Association of America. The basic purpose of the Playground Association
was to develop informational and promotional services to assist people of all ages in
using leisure time constructively. The organization changed its name in 1911 to the
Playground and Recreation Association of America and in 1926 to the National
Recreation Association.
Recreation Programs in World War I. Due to the mobilization that occurred during
World War I, there was a need for more adequate recreation programs in adjacent army
and navy stations and training camps. Several hundred communities near military
campuses provided wholesome recreation activities to both military personnel and
civilians.
Role of the Schools. The National Education Associated recommended that public
school buildings be used for community recreation and social activities. Because of this,
thousands of school systems established extensive programs of extracurricular activities,
particularly in sports, publications, hobbies, and social- and academic-related fields.
Other facilities in schools included assembly rooms, gymnasiums, swimming pools,
music and art rooms, and outdoor areas.
Outdoor Recreation Developments. The National Park Service was established in
1916; it promoted outdoor recreation and accelerated patterns of acquisition and
development of outdoor areas by the U.S. Forest Service.
The End of Shorter Hours. A reverse trend in the hours of work occurred during the
same time that the recreation movement gained momentum. A policy was created that to
approve legal restrictions of working time, based on the 8-hour day or 48-hour
workweek, was counterproductive. Economists believed that the way to stimulate the
economy was not to provide more leisure, but to increase productivity and public
spending on a broad range of consumer goods.
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Impact of the Great Depression. The Great Depression of the 1930s resulted in mass
unemployment and involuntary idleness for American workers. Although the Great
Depression had a tragic impact on many families, the federal government instituted
programs related to recreation to combat the effects of the Depression. They built
recreation facilities and leisure services to provide jobs and boost morale for the public.
Thus, the Depression was indeed a powerful positive force for the recreation movement.
Conclusion. By the early 1940s, organized recreation service was firmly established in
American life, and both government officials and social critics began to raise questions
about its future role in postwar society.
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Unit 3 Section 2: Recreation and Leisure in the Modern Era
UNIT OBJECTIVES AND OVERVIEW
This unit covers the following objectives:
1.
Discuss the ways in which recreation and leisure services expanded in the years
immediately following World War II.
2.
Discuss the social and demographic changes that initiated many changes in
recreation and leisure services in the years following World War II.
3.
Identify the ways in which the recreation and leisure movement participated in and
aided many of the causes taken up by the youth counterculture of the 1960s and
‘70s.
4.
Identify the social trends that brought a decline in the perceived value of leisure
during the late 1970s and ‘80s.
5.
Discuss the prospects for the future of recreation and leisure, based upon the
prevalent trends at the close of the twentieth century.
6.
Discuss recreation and leisure trends in the 1990s.
7.
Discuss the impact of economic recession and changing demographics on recreation
and leisure in the early twenty-first century.
The unit is divided into two sub-areas (parts 1 and 2). Each of the parts contains online
lectures and assignments to go with each lecture.
Overview
Beginning where Unit 3 Part 1 left off, this section provides a modern history of
recreation and leisure, beginning with the postwar era and concluding with a brief
discussion of the last decade of the twentieth century. Expectations for recreation and
leisure services became more specific following World War II, and a changing society
required changing leisure and recreation services. This was a time of great expansion for
the field of recreation, and many programs that still exist today were founded during this
time. The changes in recreation/leisure that followed World War II are still affecting the
field today, such as increased opportunities for women and minorities. This is why it is
so important for you to know about these changes and their impact on our society.
The counterculture era of the late 1960s and ‘70s is also presented. This was a time that
held both possibilities and problems for recreation and leisure. Recreation did much to
advance the causes of women and minorities seeking equal opportunity in society, and
these contributions are discussed.
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The late 1970s and ‘80s brought a retreat from the value once placed on recreation and
leisure, as society became increasingly obsessed with creating identity through career
advancement and earning large paychecks. The environment also suffered during this
time, as government funding was cut in many areas of recreation. The 1990s brought a
return to recreation and leisure in exchange for fewer hours and less stress in increasingly
complicated living conditions. Unit 3 Part 2 concludes with a brief overview of the early
21st century, a period characterized by an economic recession and rapidly changing
demographics.
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Part 1: Trends in Program Sponsorship
From the end of World War II to the turn of the 21st century, recreation, park, and leisure
services evolved from a relatively minor area of government responsibility and nonprofit
agency or business function to an enormous, complex enterprise. Through it all,
recreation and leisure witnessed an immense growth in participation. There was a steady
increase in sports, the arts, hobbies, outdoor recreation, and fitness programs, as well as
expansion of home-based entertainment through the use of stereo, television,
videocassette recorders, and other electronic equipment.
Growth of Recreational Participation
What factors influenced the growth of recreational participation during this time period?
National Affluence of the Postwar Years. Americans were spending $30 billion a year
on leisure. For example, involvement in different forms of recreation increased during
this time, including visits to national forests and national parks, overseas pleasure travel,
attendance at sports and cultural events, sales of golf and tennis equipment, the use of
bowling lanes, hunting, fishing, horse-racing, and the number of television sets.
Growth of Suburbs. A great number of young couples married, and these couples
moved to suburban areas where they forced the development of new recreation and park
departments with programs and facilities to serve all age groups.
Minority Migration. Millions of African Americans moved from the South to cities and
industrialized areas of the Northeast, Midwest, and the West in search of jobs and better
opportunities. Hispanic immigrants surged into the cities from the Caribbean islands and
Central America. These new residents faced economic hardships, including limited
employment opportunities.
Trends in Program Sponsorship
As a result of such population shifts and changes in lifestyles, a number of trends in
recreation program functions and in the role played by government emerged, including:
Programs Aimed at Improving Physical Fitness. During the 1950s there was a strong
emphasis on the need to develop and maintain the physical fitness level of youth.
Schools strengthened their programs of physical fitness, and many public recreational
departments increased their leisure activities to include fitness classes, conditioning,
jogging, and sports.
Emphasis on Environmental Concerns. After World War II it became evident that
there was a critical need to preserve and rehabilitate the nation’s land, water, and wildlife
resources. Great rivers and lakes were polluted by waste, wildlife was ravaged by overhunting, chemical poisons, and lack of adequate breeding areas. Within your assigned
reading you will see that efforts made by the Outdoor Recreation Resources Review
Commission led to establishment of programs designed to conserve and protect its natural
resources (e.g., The Water Quality Act of 1965, The Clean Water Restoration Act of
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1966, The Solid Waste Disposal Art of 1965, the Highway Beautification Act of 1965,
etc.) Many states and cities embarked on new programs of land acquisition and
beautification and developed plans designed to reduce air and water pollution. The
environmental progress of the ‘60s and ‘70s was stopped because federal expenditures for
parks and environmental programs were reduced significantly, the rate of land acquisition
was cut back, and the government policies regulating use of wild land for mining, timber
cutting, grazing, oil drilling, etc. were dramatically relaxed.
Activities and Services Designed to Meet Special Age Group Needs. Of particular
note is the fact that after World War II, the nation’s population experienced changes. For
example, there was a dramatic rise in the birth rate (more children in schools and
recreation centers), the life span of the population also increased, resulting in more older
adults in our society, and there was an increase in the number of marital breakups and
divorces and children born out of wedlock, which led to more single-parent households.
As a result many programs were expanded for children and youth as well as older adults.
Recreation for Persons with Disabilities. There was a large number of returning
veterans with disabilities who wanted to be reintegrated into community life. The federal
government responded by increasing its aid to special education and developing social
and recreational programs for children, youth, and older adults in both institutional and
community settings.
Increasing Programming in the Arts. Following World War II, Americans had come
to respect and enjoy the arts as both spectators and participants. With federal funding
support from the National Endowment for the Arts, community art activities continued to
flourish. As funding declined in the mid to late ‘80s, there was a reduction in the
attendance at music, drama, and dance events. Many cultural organizations in the fine
and performing arts, as well as many museums, libraries, and similar institutions,
developed new methods of fundraising for the arts. For example, lectures, tours, classes,
films, special fundraising dinners, etc, were used to attract a wide spectrum of patrons.
Services for the Economically and Socially Disadvantaged. A new wave of
legislation, such as the Economic Opportunity Act of 1964, the Housing and Urban
Development Act of 1964, and the Model Cities program (1967) provided assistance for
locally directed recreation programs to be conducted by disadvantaged citizens
themselves. Other programs including Job Corp, VISTA (Volunteers in Service to
America), and the Neighborhood Youth Corps included recreation-related components.
Programs Concerned with the Needs of Racial and Ethnic Minorities. During the
mid-1960s, destructive riots erupted in a number of major American cities (mainly innercity neighborhoods populated by ethnic minorities), with loss of life and housing. What
were the causes of these riots? The causes included frustration over continuing job and
educational discrimination, protests against the justice system and poor community
services, and inadequate recreation and park programs and facilities for minority groups.
Monies were granted each year to local governments and to organizations of local
residents to provide enriched recreation services aimed particularly at youth (e.g. sports
and social activities, cultural pursuits, job-training and tutorial programs, trips and similar
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recreation activities).
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Part 2: Leisure for Disadvantaged Groups
Drives for Equality by Disadvantaged Groups
Various populations in American society that had been disadvantaged were encouraged
to demand social and economic rights.
Racial and Ethnic Minorities. Many public recreation and park departments upgraded
facilities and organized programs and provided mobile recreation units that would enter
affected neighborhoods to offer cultural, social, and other special services to racial and
ethnic minorities. Many departments also initiated classes, workshops, festivals, and
holiday celebrations designed to promote ethnic pride and intercultural appreciation. The
Supreme Court ordered agencies such as the Boy Scouts, Girl Scouts, and YMCA to open
their memberships to racial minorities.
Progress for Women. During the 1960s and 1970s, feminist groups gathered to fight
two major areas of gender discrimination in recreation and leisure; namely, employment
practices and program involvement. Women tended to secure fewer high-level
administrative positions and were paid lower salaries than men in recreation and park
departments throughout the U.S. This is still true today. However, the government
responded by requiring recreation and park departments to hire women as park rangers,
naturalists, and park superintendents. As a result of investigations and legislation such as
Title IX (discussed earlier in this unit—click on weblink below for an overview of Title
IX legislation), girls and women today have a wider selection of sport and physical
recreation opportunities than they ever had in the past.
WEBLINK: One significant development during this period was the merger of formerly
sex-separated organizations into groups serving both sexes, such as the Boys and Girls
Clubs of America.
http://bailiwick.lib.uiowa.edu/ge/aboutRE.html
Gays and Lesbians. In the 1960s and 1970s, many gay and lesbian groups began to
organize and promote their recreation and social activities openly on college campuses
and in community life. In many cities, they had to fight through the courts for the right to
take park in community celebrations, parades, and other civic events. During the 1980s
and 1990s there were athletic events featuring thousands of homosexual participants.
There was a higher degree of acceptance, but in some cases Christian organizations
protested gay festivals and the participation of gays and lesbians in big-city St. Patrick’s
Day parades.
WEBLINKS: The weblinks below provide an overview and describes the history of an
annual celebration held in New Orleans for gays and lesbians, as well as the Atlanta Pride
annual celebration in Atlanta, GA.
http://www.southerndecadence.net/southern-decadence.htm
http://www.southerndecadence.net/history.htm
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http://www.atlantapride.org/
Older Adults in Community Life. Older adults were generally regarded and treated as
powerless individuals who were both physically and economically vulnerable. However,
under the leadership of organizations such as the American Association of Retired
Persons (AARP) and the Gray Panthers, older adults began to demands and obtain
improved benefits. With federal support provided from programs such as the
Administration on Aging, senior citizens; groups and golden age clubs around the U.S.
began to offer diversified programs of health care, social services, housing and
transportation, and recreation.
WEBLINKS: The weblinks provided below provide an informational overview of
AARP and the Gray Panthers.
http://www.aarp.org/about-aarp/
http://graypanthers.org/index.php?option=com_content&task=view&id=32&Itemid=45
Persons with Disabilities. Following World War II, persons with disabilities began to
act as their own advocates, demanding equal rights and opportunities. They promoted
positive legislation and increased community services for individuals with physical,
mental, and social disabilities. Many organizations developed innovative programming
such as theater arts for people with physical disabilities, skiing for people with visual
impairments, and sports and track-and-field events for people with mobility impairments.
We will discuss recreation for people with disabilities later in Unit 6.
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Part 3: Fiscal Cutbacks and Expansion
Fiscal Cutbacks
Despite the positive progress made in the recreation, parks, and leisure-service field, a
serious threat mounted in the 1970s and 1980s and funding cutbacks were made in states
and cities across the U.S. These funding cutbacks involved parks, libraries, recreation,
social services, and street sweeping and maintenance.
Expanding Use of Revenue Sources. Many recreation and park agencies responded to
funding cutbacks by raising fees and charges for program participation, use of facilities,
rental equipment, and other involvement in a wide range of leisure activities. Funding
cuts also resulted in new charges on programs such as day camps, sports league
registration, classes, or outings, or increased fees for existing services. A new mindset
developed that recreation was an “industry” or “business” in order for recreation agencies
to be competitive and successful.
Privatization of Recreation and Park Operations. Many recreation, park, and leisureservice agencies resorted to privatization to carry out functions that they could not fulfill
themselves. Privatization refers to subcontracting or developing concession
arrangements with private organizations. Many cities now rely on private businesses to
construct or maintain facilities, provide food and health services, and/or manage a variety
of other public functions. For example, many public departments of recreation and parks
have contracted with private businesses to operate golf courses, tennis complexes,
marinas, and other facilities.
Impact of Funding Cuts. Many recreation and park departments experienced cutbacks
that created manpower freezes and staff discharges, program eliminations, rejection of
bond issues, and reduced facility maintenance. In fact, in larger cities where there is a
greater number of disadvantaged families who deal with high welfare statistics, school
dropouts, drug and alcohol abuse, youth gangs, and random violence, recreation and park
programs are now only able to offer the most minimal opportunities. Facilities are often
vandalized and covered with graffiti, and staff members are threatened.
Expansion of Other Recreation Programs
In contrast with this negative picture, other forms of recreation services have flourished
over the past three decades. Today, the largest single component of leisure services is the
commercial recreation businesses. Consider these examples:
•
•
•
•
•
travel and tourism
fitness spas
professional sports and sports equipment
the manufacture and sale of hobbies, toys, and games
various forms of popular entertainment
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Other growth areas include specialized recreation programming in the form of therapeutic
recreation, employee recreation services, campus recreation, and private-membership and
residential leisure services. This growth has been accomplished through the development
of professional organizations, national and regional conferences, newsletters and
magazines, continuing education and certification programs.
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Part 4: Trends in the 1990s
Several important demographic, social, economic, and technological trends of the 1990s
have influenced recreation and leisure service provision, including the following:
Continuing Diversification. The overall recreation and park movement shifted from a
primary focus on programs sponsored by local, public, tax-supported agencies to a much
broader emphasis on several different types of commercially sponsored, private, or
special-interest organizations.
Economic Stratification: Income Gaps and “Luxury Fever.” Historically, the U.S.
was viewed as the land of opportunity where every person is capable of climbing the
socioeconomic ladder. However, during the 1990s, these assumptions reversed.
Actually, the U.S. has become the most economically stratified of industrial nations.
While in the mid-1990s the number of wealthy families grew steadily, the nation’s
poverty rate increased to its highest level in 10 years. Meanwhile the middle class was
declining. You might ask, what does this stratification have to do with recreation and
leisure? Well, you have many in our society who spend outrageously on recreation
(luxury fever), such as cars, clothes, hobbies, etc. At the same time you have others who
have minimal resources for recreation and leisure.
Growing Conservatism in Social Policy. There has also been a shift in the late 1980s
and early 1990s toward more conservative social and economic policies. For example,
assistance for welfare and other programs serving the economically disadvantaged were
reduced. There was also reduction in the support for environmental education programs.
The federal government did not want to give support to music, theater, ballet, opera, film,
literature, museum work, and the visual arts. The widespread decline in support for
needed public services benefiting minorities and the poor posed severe challenges to
many public and nonprofit leisure-service organizations during the early and mid-1990s.
Commodification and Privatization of Leisure Services. Instead of having clearly
marked areas of responsibility and program operations in the leisure service field,
separate kinds of organizations (governmental, nonprofit, private, and commercial) began
to overlap each other through partnership or co-sponsorship arrangements. Two
components of this overall trend were commodification and privatization.
As you learned in the previous unit, commodification describes the process of taking any
product or service and commercializing it by designing and marketing it to yield the
greatest degree of profit. Consider then that art museums, libraries, and theater, orchestra
and ballet companies began to offer popular entertainment for profit, such as offering
chartered trips abroad, film series and lecture programs, social events, and jazz concerts.
Privatization refers to the growing practice of having private corporations take on
responsibility for providing services, maintaining facilities, or performing other functions
formerly carried out by government agencies. In terms of public recreation and park
privatization, the most striking event was the 1998 contract for a private group, the
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Central Park Conservancy, to operate New York’s famous and historic Central Park, with
joint public and private funding.
New Environmental Initiatives. Based on the nation’s reduced support for
environmental protection and the recovery of polluted lakes and streams, as well as the
continuing acquisition and preservation of wilderness areas, the nation’s park system and
forests were neglected and crowded during the 1980s and early 1990s. To meet this
challenge, park authorities and Congress instituted new fees to gather additional revenue
and restricted automobile traffic into interior sections. Corporate sponsors were recruited
to assist in park maintenance, and environmental organizations provided support for the
acquisition of new parks and wildlands.
Reported Decline of Leisure. The decline of the workweek came to a halt at midcentury (1950s), and the average hours of work remained relatively stable in the period
that followed. In 1987 the Louis Harris polling organization found that the number of
hours the average American worked each week had risen from 40.6 in 1973 to 48.4 in
1983. At the same time, leisure hours had declined from 26.2 to 17.7 hours a week.
Technological Impacts on Leisure. A number of technological innovations impacted
American leisure in the 1990s. Many were related to travels, including the use of
computers in tourism planning and reservations, movies and video games replaced Bingo,
and cars became entertainment centers with the latest audio and video technology.
Consider also home theater systems, stereo and CD systems, satellite services, DVD
players, fax machines, the internet, etc.
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Part 5: Leisure and Recreation in the 21st Century
At the beginning of the 21st century, changing populations and an economic slip affected
the delivery of organized recreation programs. This section highlights three issues of
particular interest to leisure service professionals
Recreation and Health. You have probably read or heard of concerns about the
sedentary lifestyles of a large percentage of adults and children in the U.S. contributing to
obesity at epidemic levels. During the past two to three decades, the number of
overweight and obese children in the U.S. more than doubled. Community recreation
agencies responded to this public health crisis with diverse initiatives. For example, in
Graham, NC, a group of private and public organizations funded the Movin’ Van
program, a mobile fitness program that provides physical activity programs to overweight
children and adolescents in low-income neighborhoods.
WEBLINK: The weblink listed below provides an overview and purpose of this
program.
http://www.pecentral.org/bp/indivBPDisplay.asp?ID=564&votes=254
Financial Accountability. The economic recession of the late 20th and early 21st
centuries has resulted in considerable financial pressures for local and state governments.
Because of the economic recession, there has been an increased demand for financial
accountability from public agencies and nonprofit organizations. Funding organizations
want to know that programs are achieving their intended outcomes.
Changing Demographics. The population served by recreation and leisure
organizations in the 21st century will differ substantially from that of the 20th century.
We are already seeing this change in our communities. Some examples include the
following:
•
The number and percentage of adults 65years of age and older will continue to
grow. By 2050, this population is projected to grow from 35 million to over 70
million.
•
The number of households without children and single-parent households will
continue to grow.
•
The growth of the Hispanic population in the U.S. will continue throughout the
next few decade as Hispanic Americans become the largest ethnic minority group
in the U.S. This occurred with the 2000 U.S. Census.
The changing population will require new approaches to delivery of leisure services.
Traditional recreation programs for older adults may not appeal to baby boomers because
they highly value their independence and resist aging stereotypes. Leisure service
professionals will also need to examine the cultural framework that underlies programs
and services.
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