This movement was a reaction against the conservative social mores of
the 1950s, the
political conservativism (and perceived social
repression) of the Cold War
period, and the
The 1960s youth rebellion largely originated on college campuses,
emerging directly out of the American Civil Rights Movement. The Free Speech Movement at the University of California at Berkeley was one early example, as a socially privileged group of students began
to identify themselves as having interests as a class that were at odds with
the interests and practices of the university and its corporate sponsors.
As the sixties progressed, the Vietnam war became an increasingly high-profile object of criticism, and the sense
of the younger generation as a class who wished to create a different society
gained momentum. One manifestation of this was the general strike that took
place in
As criticism of the established social order became more widespread
among the newly emergent youth class, new theories about culture and personal
identity began to spread, and old, non-western ideas--particularly with regard
to religion, social organization and spirtual
enlightenment--were also embraced.
New cultural forms that were perceived as opposed to the old emerged,
including the pop music of the Beatles, which rapidly evolved to shape and reflect the youth culture's
emphasis on change and experimentation. Underground newspapers sprang up in most cities and college towns, serving to define and
communicate the range of phenomena that defined the counterculture: radical
political opposition to "the establishment," colorful experimental
(and often explicity drug-influenced) approaches to
art, music and cinema, and uninhibited indulgence in sex and drugs as a symbol
of freedom.
The most visible radical element of this counterculture were the hippies, some of whom formed communes to live as far outside of the established
system as possible. This aspect of the movement rejected active political
engagement with the mainstream and, following the dictate of Timothy Leary to "tune in, turn on and drop out", attempted to change
society by dropping out of it.
As members of the hippie movement grew older and moderated their views,
the 1960s counterculture was absorbed by the mainstream, leaving a lasting
impact on morality, lifestyle and fashion, and a legacy that is still actively
contested--debates that are sometimes framed in the
Hippies (singular hippie or
sometimes hippy) were members of the 1960s counterculture movement who adopted a communal or nomadic lifestyle,
renounced corporate nationalism and the Vietnam War,
embraced aspects of Buddhism, Hinduism,
and/or Native American religious culture, and were otherwise at odds with traditional middle class
Western values. They saw paternalistic government, corporate industry, and traditional social mores as part of
a unified establishment that had no authentic legitimacy.
The term derived from hipster which referred to white people in the US who
were 'hip' or became involved with black culture, e.g. Harry "The Hipster" Gibson. September 6, 1965,
marked the first San Francisco newspaper story, by Michael Fellon, that used
the word 'hippie' to refer to the younger bohemians (as
opposed to the older Beat Generation). The name did not catch on with the establishment press until almost
two years later.
The hippie movement was at its height in the late 1960s. The July 7, 1967 issue
of TIME
magazine had for its cover story: 'The Hippies: The Philosophy of a
Subculture.'
The touristic influx that accompanied the
highly-publicized
By 1970, much
of hippie style had passed into mainstream culture, but little of its substance. The mainstream press lost
interest in the hippie subculture as such, though many hippies made and have
since continued to maintain a long-term commitment to it. Because the hippies
have tended to avoid publicity since the Summer of Love/Woodstock era, a popular myth has arisen that they no longer exist. In fact, they
may still be found in Bohemian (or merely openminded) enclaves throughout
the world, as wanderers following the bands they love, or elsewhere in the
interstices of the global economy. Many have been rendezvousing annually at
Rainbow Gatherings since the early 1970s to celebrate and pray for peace. Even today, many still gather at
meetings and festivals to celebrate life and love, such as the Peace Fest.
As a group, hippies tend to have longer hair and more/fuller beards than has been generally fashionable. Both male and female
African-Americans (and a few Caucasians also possessing "nappy" hair)
associated with the 1960s counterculture (and the parallel civil rights
movement) wore their hair in "afros." Dreadlocks are
another type of hairstyle that has been worn (more common among
"neo-hippies"; see below). Some people not associated with the
counterculture find such long hair offensive, in part because of the
iconoclastic attitude it bespeaks, and in part because they see it as unhygienic,
or feminine. When Hair moved
from off-Broadway to a
large Broadway
theater in 1968, the
hippie counterculture was already diversifying and fleeing traditional urban
settings.
Other traits associated with hippies include:
In hindsight, people may recall that hippies did not smoke cigarettes
made of tobacco, and that they considered tobacco dangerous, but a look through
photographs made at the time shows that cigarettes were very much in evidence.
Often, the term "hippie" is loosely used with the pejorative
connotation of participation in recreational drug use (at least to the extent
of using marijuana) and choosing not to think or care much about work,
responsibility, the larger society, or personal hygiene.
Though they were a genuine counterculture movement, the early hippies were not particularly tolerant of homosexuality. They were also prone to what some people would now deem highly
unacceptable sexism. This
changed rapidly as hippie culture embraced feminism and egalitarian principles.
The term is also associated with participation in peace movements, including peace marches such as the USA marches on Washington and civil rights marches, and anti-Vietnam War
demonstrations including the 1968 Democratic Convention. The Yippies represented a highly politically active sub-group.
Hippie political expression often took the form of dropping out of
society to implement the changes they sought desired. The back to the land movement, cooperative business enterprises, alternative energy, free press
movement, and organic farming were all political in nature at their start.
Philosophically, hippie thought drew upon the earlier Beat Generation.
Neo-hippie is a name given to modern hippies, who, while retainging some aspects of the '60s hippie movement, have
changed in some areas, for example by embracing punk values of anarchism, anti-establishmentarianism, feminism and
acceptance of homosexuality. Dreadlocks, especially with beads sewn into them,
are popular among neo-hippies.
http://www.worldhistory.com/wiki/H/Hippie.htm