In this issue, I would like to introduce the history of jeans, a pair of which you probably own at least once. In 1848, when gold was discovered in the U.S. state of California, people rushed to California to get rich and dig for gold. This event is called the Gold Rush. During this gold rush, jeans were introduced as sturdy work clothes that would not tear easily when digging in the dirt. At the time, Levi's patented a pair of jeans that were reinforced with metal fittings in places where they were prone to fraying, and it was a great success. Levi's has become a leading manufacturer of jeans to this day. You have probably seen this logo before. And over time, jeans became the workwear of choice for the average worker.
As time went by, in the 1960s, against the backdrop of the anti-war movement in Vietnam and the civil rights movement, a counterculture emerged that wanted to overturn the conventional way of society. This is the counterculture. Typical examples include LSD (narcotics), Bob Dylan, and rock music. As the world shifted toward liberalism, the American counterculture began to wear jeans, which had become a symbol of "freedom and rebellion" because they were worn by workers of low social standing. From there, the general public also began to wear jeans, and they spread from the U.S. to the rest of the world.
Many rock and roll singers wore jeans. This 1963 record by Bob Dylan seems to be the first time a singer appeared in jeans in a record cover photo. Thus, jeans were worn with the dreams and hopes of many people from the gold rush to the counterculture.