--- title: "Meaning & Key Takeaway of: The fifties were when people started…" description: "\"The fifties were when people started coming down on \"juvenile delinquents,\" \"hoodlums,\" \"vandals\"--anybody that was young, wore a motorcycle jacket, an..." image: "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/329/joe-bob-briggs-22778_delinquents_the-fifties-were-when-people-started-com_3008620.jpg" --- # The fifties were when people started coming down on… ![“The fifties were when people started coming down on "juvenile delinquents," "hoodlums," "vandals"--anybody that was young, wore a motorcycle jacket, and didn't act polite around older people.” quote by Joe Bob Briggs](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/329/joe-bob-briggs-22778_delinquents_the-fifties-were-when-people-started-com_3008620.jpg) [Download](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/329/joe-bob-briggs-22778_delinquents_the-fifties-were-when-people-started-com_3008620.jpg) [Open image](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/329/joe-bob-briggs-22778_delinquents_the-fifties-were-when-people-started-com_3008620.jpg) > “The fifties were when people started coming down on "juvenile delinquents," "hoodlums," "vandals"--anybody that was young, wore a motorcycle jacket, and didn't act polite around older people.” [Joe Bob Briggs](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/joe-bob-briggs/) ## About This Quote This interpretation was drafted with AI assistance. It is one reading of the quote, not the author's own explanation. The 1950s labeled young non‑conformists as delinquents, reflecting generational conflict. **In simple terms:** Youth were labeled troublemakers. Key Takeaway Challenge stereotypes of youth. Themes generational conflict social labeling rebellion Mood critical historical Type sociological analytical When to use this quote - education - law enforcement - family dynamics - media studies Key Concepts youth culture media bias Questions to Reflect On - Why were youths stigmatized? - How can society better understand rebellion? A Different Perspective Labels can be unfairly punitive. ★ ★ ★ ★ ★ No ratings yet [Delinquents](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/delinquents/) [Fifties](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/fifties/) [Juvenile](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/juvenile/) [Motorcycle](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/motorcycle/) [Older people](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/older-people/) [People](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/people/) [Polite](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/polite/) [Sixties](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/sixties/) [Vandals](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/vandals/) ## Related quotes > [“The nice thing about dating in your fifties is the people that are going to age well are easy to spot!”](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/steven-magee/the-nice-thing-about-dating-in-your-fifties-is-the-people-that-are/) [Steven Magee](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/steven-magee/) > [Those who don't build must burn. It's as old as history and juvenile delinquents.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/ray-bradbury/those-who-don-t-build-must-burn-it-s-as-old-as-history-and-juvenile/) [Ray Bradbury](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/ray-bradbury/) > [One reason there are so many juvenile delinquents today is that their parents didn't burn their britches behind them.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/anonymous/one-reason-there-are-so-many-juvenile-delinquents-today-is-that-their/) [Anonymous](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/anonymous/) > [They put me in a holding cell with a black kid and a white kid and a Chinese kid. We're the United Nations of…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/sherman-alexie/they-put-me-in-a-holding-cell-with-a-black-kid-and-a-white-kid-and-a/) [Sherman Alexie](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/sherman-alexie/) > [Working with drug addicts, alcoholics, and so-called juvenile delinquents in New York City convinced me that instead of working with individuals, more effective methods…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/jacque-fresco/working-with-drug-addicts-alcoholics-and-so-called-juvenile/) [Jacque Fresco](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/jacque-fresco/) > [“The more the girls heard, the more it became clear that Uncle Jake and their straight-laced father had been first-class juvenile delinquents.”](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/michael-buckley/the-more-the-girls-heard-the-more-it-became-clear-that-uncle-jake-and/) [Michael Buckley](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/michael-buckley/) > [You get into your late fifties, people start falling like flies all around you. I don't take life for granted any more. I'm really…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/tom-petty/you-get-into-your-late-fifties-people-start-falling-like-flies-all/) [Tom Petty](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/tom-petty/) > [I have to say I'm all for public flogging. One type of criminal that a public humiliation might work particularly well with are the…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/ann-coulter/i-have-to-say-i-m-all-for-public-flogging-one-type-of-criminal-that-a-2/) [Ann Coulter](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/ann-coulter/) > [As a newspaper reporter, I covered and was around a fair number of crime scenes involving juvenile delinquents, and few things bothered me more…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/lz-granderson/as-a-newspaper-reporter-i-covered-and-was-around-a-fair-number-of/) [LZ Granderson](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/lz-granderson/) > [“That’s how summer is: no past or future but all present tense, long twilights like vandals, breaking into new days.”](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/gretel-ehrlich/that-s-how-summer-is-no-past-or-future-but-all-present-tense-long/) [Gretel Ehrlich](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/gretel-ehrlich/) > [It liberates the vandal to travel-you never saw a bigoted, opinionated, stubborn, narrow-minded, self-conceited, almighty mean man in your life but he had stuck…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/mark-twain/it-liberates-the-vandal-to-travel-you-never-saw-a-bigoted-opinionated/) [Mark Twain](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/mark-twain/) > [Maria Edgeworth grumbled against vandals who ruined immortal works by quoting the life out of them. "How far our literature may in future suffer…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/willis-regier/maria-edgeworth-grumbled-against-vandals-who-ruined-immortal-works-by/) [Willis Regier](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/willis-regier/) > [Ordinary people aren't going to give up emotions and inspiration just because science sniffs at subjectivity. Science shouldn't be so edgy and defensive. Vandals…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/deepak-chopra/ordinary-people-aren-t-going-to-give-up-emotions-and-inspiration-just/) [Deepak Chopra](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/deepak-chopra/) > [The vandals listened, but only when others were stronger. If vandals are equal or stronger, their word is the last word.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/dejan-stojanovic/the-vandals-listened-but-only-when-others-were-stronger-if-vandals/) [Dejan Stojanovic](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/dejan-stojanovic/) > [Wars--and what is war except crime on a mass scale?--destroy rather than produce. The vandal that destroys a window causes not only the owner…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/adam-young/wars-and-what-is-war-except-crime-on-a-mass-scale-destroy-rather-than/) [Adam Young](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/adam-young/) ## More by Joe Bob Briggs > [If you hate what you're seeing, you call it sex and violence. If you like it, you call it omance and adventure.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/joe-bob-briggs/if-you-hate-what-you-re-seeing-you-call-it-sex-and-violence-if-you/) [Joe Bob Briggs](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/joe-bob-briggs/) > [They'll give you an Oscar if they think you're about to drop dead. The problem with The Oscars is, the average age of The…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/joe-bob-briggs/they-ll-give-you-an-oscar-if-they-think-you-re-about-to-drop-dead-the/) [Joe Bob Briggs](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/joe-bob-briggs/) > [Discourse is fleeting, but junk mail is forever.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/joe-bob-briggs/discourse-is-fleeting-but-junk-mail-is-forever/) [Joe Bob Briggs](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/joe-bob-briggs/) > [I hate The Oscars. The Oscars make me want to throw things at the TV. In the ancient history of The Oscars, people would…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/joe-bob-briggs/i-hate-the-oscars-the-oscars-make-me-want-to-throw-things-at-the-tv/) [Joe Bob Briggs](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/joe-bob-briggs/) > [I love Martin Scorsese, but there's another indication of what The Oscars are all about. They've ignored Martin Scorsese for going on 35 years…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/joe-bob-briggs/i-love-martin-scorsese-but-there-s-another-indication-of-what-the/) [Joe Bob Briggs](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/joe-bob-briggs/) > [You're not a real Texan till you've been kicked out of every decent state in America.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/joe-bob-briggs/you-re-not-a-real-texan-till-you-ve-been-kicked-out-of-every-decent/) [Joe Bob Briggs](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/joe-bob-briggs/) > [The best ally you can have in breaking up a street fight is a grandmother.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/joe-bob-briggs/the-best-ally-you-can-have-in-breaking-up-a-street-fight-is-a/) [Joe Bob Briggs](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/joe-bob-briggs/) > [I always remind people why The Oscars got started in 1928: It was an effort by the studios to suppress the unions. They started…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/joe-bob-briggs/i-always-remind-people-why-the-oscars-got-started-in-1928-it-was-an/) [Joe Bob Briggs](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/joe-bob-briggs/) > [There is no post-9/11. Everything from now until the end of time is post-9/11.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/joe-bob-briggs/there-is-no-post-9-11-everything-from-now-until-the-end-of-time-is/) [Joe Bob Briggs](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/joe-bob-briggs/) > [Everything changed in Bosnia, when General Wesley Clark proved that you could fight a war with high- level precision air strikes and a bare…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/joe-bob-briggs/everything-changed-in-bosnia-when-general-wesley-clark-proved-that/) [Joe Bob Briggs](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/joe-bob-briggs/) > [Almost every venerable tradition at a men's club starts out as a joke.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/joe-bob-briggs/almost-every-venerable-tradition-at-a-men-s-club-starts-out-as-a-joke/) [Joe Bob Briggs](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/joe-bob-briggs/) > [In other words, New York has gone all suburban and bourgeois on us.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/joe-bob-briggs/in-other-words-new-york-has-gone-all-suburban-and-bourgeois-on-us/) [Joe Bob Briggs](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/joe-bob-briggs/) > [It's not a crime to get drunk.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/joe-bob-briggs/it-s-not-a-crime-to-get-drunk/) [Joe Bob Briggs](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/joe-bob-briggs/) > [The movies that are honored at The Oscars are always a certain type: Old-fashioned. It's a bunch of well-made, old-fashioned movies that support our…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/joe-bob-briggs/the-movies-that-are-honored-at-the-oscars-are-always-a-certain-type/) [Joe Bob Briggs](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/joe-bob-briggs/) > [“I went to school in Hooks, Texas, where most people can't even read the name stitched over their own pocket.”](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/joe-bob-briggs/i-went-to-school-in-hooks-texas-where-most-people-can-t-even-read-the/) [Joe Bob Briggs](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/joe-bob-briggs/) [Explore all 27 Joe Bob Briggs quotes ](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/joe-bob-briggs/) ## More Delinquents quotes > [When members unite with the church, they should not only make a profession of faith in Christ (that is essential), but in light of…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/jay-adams/when-members-unite-with-the-church-they-should-not-only-make-a/) [Jay Adams](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/jay-adams/) > [Organized charity itself is. . . the surest sign that our civilization has bred, is breeding and is perpetuating constantly increasing numbers of defectives,…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/margaret-sanger/organized-charity-itself-is-the-surest-sign-that-our-civilization-has/) [Margaret Sanger](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/margaret-sanger/) > [Those who don't build must burn. It's as old as history and juvenile delinquents.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/ray-bradbury/those-who-don-t-build-must-burn-it-s-as-old-as-history-and-juvenile/) [Ray Bradbury](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/ray-bradbury/) > [One reason there are so many juvenile delinquents today is that their parents didn't burn their britches behind them.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/anonymous/one-reason-there-are-so-many-juvenile-delinquents-today-is-that-their/) [Anonymous](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/anonymous/) > [If you want to understand entrepreneurs, you have to study the psychology of the juvenile delinquent. They don't have the same anxiety triggers that…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/abraham-zaleznik/if-you-want-to-understand-entrepreneurs-you-have-to-study-the/) [Abraham Zaleznik](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/abraham-zaleznik/) > [In an age of abstract experience, fornication Is self-expression, adjunct to Christian euphoria, And whores become delinquents; delinquents, patients; Patients, wards of society. Whores,…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/allen-tate/in-an-age-of-abstract-experience-fornication-is-self-expression/) [Allen Tate](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/allen-tate/) > [And who are you supposed to be? the King of snot-nosed delinquents?](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/michael-buckley/and-who-are-you-supposed-to-be-the-king-of-snot-nosed-delinquents/) [Michael Buckley](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/michael-buckley/) > [Every age and degree of understanding should have its proper measure of discipline. With regard to boys and adolescents, therefore, or those who cannot…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/benedict-of-nursia/every-age-and-degree-of-understanding-should-have-its-proper-measure/) [Benedict of Nursia](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/benedict-of-nursia/) > [“The more the girls heard, the more it became clear that Uncle Jake and their straight-laced father had been first-class juvenile delinquents.”](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/michael-buckley/the-more-the-girls-heard-the-more-it-became-clear-that-uncle-jake-and/) [Michael Buckley](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/michael-buckley/) > [Caprice, independence and rebellion, which are opposed to the social order, are essential to the good health of an ethnic group. We shall measure…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/jean-dubuffet/caprice-independence-and-rebellion-which-are-opposed-to-the-social/) [Jean Dubuffet](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/jean-dubuffet/) > ["Lawyers Are": The only civil delinquents whose judges must of necessity be chosen from (amongst) themselves.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/charles-caleb-colton/lawyers-are-the-only-civil-delinquents-whose-judges-must-of-necessity/) [Charles Caleb Colton](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/charles-caleb-colton/) > [But have we Holy Ghost power-power that restricts the devil's power, pulls down strongholds and obtains promises? Daring delinquents will be damned if they…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/leonard-ravenhill/but-have-we-holy-ghost-power-power-that-restricts-the-devil-s-power/) [Leonard Ravenhill](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/leonard-ravenhill/) > [Now he is a statesman, when what he really wants is to be what most reporters are, adult delinquents.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/peggy-noonan/now-he-is-a-statesman-when-what-he-really-wants-is-to-be-what-most/) [Peggy Noonan](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/peggy-noonan/) > [Social media has created a legion of social delinquents, billions of people speaking not their minds but their spleens, venting everything from the gum-cracking…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/steven-weber/social-media-has-created-a-legion-of-social-delinquents-billions-of/) [Steven Weber](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/steven-weber/) > [“Travis Hirschi found that delinquents tended to have lower IQs than nondelinquents. This study also found that a lower IQ meant a person was…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/steven-briggs/travis-hirschi-found-that-delinquents-tended-to-have-lower-iqs-than/) [Steven Briggs](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/steven-briggs/) [Browse all 49 Delinquents quotes ](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/delinquents/) ```json { "@context": "https://schema.org", "@graph": [ { "@type": "Quotation", "text": "The fifties were when people started coming down on \"juvenile delinquents,\" \"hoodlums,\" \"vandals\"--anybody that was young, wore a motorcycle jacket, and didn't act polite around older people.", "creator": { "@type": "Person", "name": "Joe Bob Briggs" }, "isPartOf": { "@id": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/#website" }, "url": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/joe-bob-briggs/the-fifties-were-when-people-started-coming-down-on-juvenile/", "about": { "@type": "Thing", "name": "Delinquents" }, "@id": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/joe-bob-briggs/the-fifties-were-when-people-started-coming-down-on-juvenile/#quotation", "image": { "@type": "ImageObject", "@id": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/329/joe-bob-briggs-22778_delinquents_the-fifties-were-when-people-started-com_3008620.jpg", "contentUrl": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/329/joe-bob-briggs-22778_delinquents_the-fifties-were-when-people-started-com_3008620.jpg", "url": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/329/joe-bob-briggs-22778_delinquents_the-fifties-were-when-people-started-com_3008620.jpg", "width": 1080, "height": 1080, "caption": "“The fifties were when people started coming down on \"juvenile delinquents,\" \"hoodlums,\" \"vandals\"--anybody…” — Joe Bob Briggs", "creditText": "SMS4Smile Quotes", "creator": { "@id": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/#organization" } } }, { "@type": "BreadcrumbList", "itemListElement": [ { "@type": "ListItem", "position": 1, "name": "Home", "item": "https://sms4smile.com/" }, { "@type": "ListItem", "position": 2, "name": "Quotes", "item": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/" }, { "@type": "ListItem", "position": 3, "name": "Joe Bob Briggs", "item": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/joe-bob-briggs/" }, { "@type": "ListItem", "position": 4, "name": "The fifties were when people started...", "item": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/joe-bob-briggs/the-fifties-were-when-people-started-coming-down-on-juvenile/" } ], "@id": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/joe-bob-briggs/the-fifties-were-when-people-started-coming-down-on-juvenile/#breadcrumb" }, { "@type": "WebSite", "@id": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/#website", "name": "SMS4Smile Quotes", "url": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/", "publisher": { "@id": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/#organization" } }, { "@type": "Organization", "@id": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/#organization", "name": "SMS4Smile Quotes", "url": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/", "logo": { "@type": "ImageObject", "url": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/wp-content/themes/sq/assets/icons/icon-512.png", "width": 512, "height": 512 } } ] } ```