Me thinks that the protestestors of yesteryear are a bit taken aback that their success in creating a new generation of fellow travellers has more than exceeded their expectations. It's like the yippies of old still had a bit of civility, a sort of "We're Still Americans" kind of line you didn't cross. Any comments?
Protests of yore sometimes turned violent. It could be argued that many of the changes were the reaction to violence (or avoidance thereof). For example, how much of the takeover of academia is attributable to the campus riots, and do strong-arm tactics still keep leftists in power there (e.g., hiring policies, ad hominem attacks, etc.)? The secondary effect was to remove a lot of decision-making from the ballot box - or was that the intent?
I'd argue that the America-hating was in full freak regalia back in the day. Many good intentions (such as racial equality) were bent into the service of radical socialists and anarchists.