Social context

1970s was a time of increased politicization in societies worldwide, identified with the upheavals of 1968 and its aftermaths. The Soviet invasion of Czechoslovakia, the Vietnam War and its international opposition, the inspiration of anti-colonial movements around the globe and widespread student unrests led to a comeback of left wing organizations, many of which were related to militant Maoism or Trotskyism. Alongside this growth of left-wing parties, new political projects developed: the Black Panther movement in the USA; the Women’s Liberation movement; the Gay Liberation Front.
According to Steve Edwards any artist who doesn't intent on “. . .‘sleeping through the deluge that threatens them’ could not help but be touched by this wave of unrest.”(Edwards, 2004)