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Hippies~Frequently Asked Questions

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Namaste!
"Hippies" Frequently Asked Questions
COMING SOON HIPPIE FAQ'S 2

What Did The Hippies Want?
by Alicia Bay Laurel
November 19, 2001

We wanted intimacy--not a neighborhood where you didn't know anyone on the block,
or you competed, kept up with the Joneses.

A hunter-gatherer or early agricultural community meant that people lived, worked and sought deeper contact with the holy spirit as a group, and they all knew one another, from cradle to grave. I used to call my hippie friendships "a horizontal extended family," as opposed to the ancient tribal extended family, which was multi-generational, and therefore, vertical.

We wanted a culture which acknowledged the human body, not just for sex, but to hug each other, to be naked without shame, to revere the body with natural foods, beneficial exercise, herbs, baths, massage, deep understanding. This was not part of the culture from which we came.

We wanted a culture that thrived on gift-giving. We hitchhiked, shared our food and drugs, gave away our possessions. People who could afford to buy land invited others who could not to live there.

We opened free stores, free clinics, free kitchens, not just in the Haight, but everywhere we went. We wanted be living proof that God was taking care of us and therefore there was no need to hoard.

We wanted to live without the constraints of time. We wanted to wake up each day and decide what would be the most fun to do that day--or just find out as it went along. We wanted to go with the flow, follow our bliss, be here now. This was in complete opposition to the culture from which we came.

We wanted new ways to value one another, rather than by wealth, status, looks, achievements, machismo, as our culture of origin had taught us, and continues to teach us through the media. We wanted to value one another for being lovable and real.

We valued spiritual depth, which we referred to as "heavy." We admired one another for being happy. We admired those who offered selfless service or peaceful resolution of conflict.We wanted a spirituality that actually caused you to grow as a person, not one in which people attended religious gatherings for social status. We wanted to be guided by our own Inner Spirits, rather than by priests.

We thirsted for the spiritual awareness and grace we experienced on psychedelics, without psychedelics, or in addition to them. Many hippies would spent their last cent on a weekend workshop that promised to "change your life forever." That was how so many gurus found followers in those days.

We wanted to live in harmony with the earth, the plants and animals, the indigenous peoples of the earth, with each other, with ourselves. We were the fuel behind the rapid expansion of the environmental movement. We experimented with living arrangements that we thought would harmonize with nature. We sought out indigenous tribal elders as our teachers.

We wanted to make the things we wore and used with our hands, grow our food and medicine, feel all kinds of weather--all the experiences our modern urban lives had excluded in the name of convenience and comfort. We wanted to live on the road, have adventures, build things that hadn't been built before, and live in them.

We wanted to live our mythic selves, give ourselves names that resonated with our souls, dress in costumes that expressed our dreams, do daring deeds, dance as if no one was looking, decorate our homes with magical things, listen to music that took us out of ordinary reality into altered states of awareness.

We wanted to see life without violence. We wanted media that contained truth. Some of us risked our lives to find out what the government was doing and let the underground press know. We wanted to talk about things in print that we were not allowed to discuss in our culture of origin.

We wanted to live without stupid, arbitrary rules, either for ourselves or for our children. Some of our children, as adults today, say they wish we had been more protective of them, or offered more structure. We only knew what we endured, being as culturally different from our culture of origin as Chinese are from Italians, and punished for it, and wished to spare our children these experiences. However, some portion of kids raised by hippie parents grew up to be hippies themselves.
At that point, one can say, a new culture was born and continues.

"Hippie"
Where did the word come from?

Hip: The History is the story of an American obsession. Derived from the Wolof word hepi or hipi ("to see," or "to open one's eyes"), which came to America with West African Slaves, hip is the dance between black and white -- or insider and outsider -- that gives America its unique flavor and rhythm. It has created fortunes, destroyed lives and shaped the way millions of us talk, dress, dance, make love or see ourselves in the mirror. Everyone knows what hip is.

Wolof history probably dates to about the 12th or 13th century. Wolof forefathers migrated west to the coast from Mali following the defeat of the Empire of the Ghana in the 11th century. Oral family histories indicate that at least some of the first settlers in the area were of Fulbe origin. Much Wolof history has been preserved in oral praise songs which are recited by griots ("professional praise singers").

Portuguese traveler accounts from the 15th century indicate an organized Wolof presence in what is still their homelands. Europeans established a fort on Gorée Island off the coast of modern day Dakar, which served as one of the primary points of departure for slaving vessels bound for the Americas. Since European contact Wolof history has undergone numerous conquests and revolts as competing rulers challenged one another for kingship.

'Humans BE-ING' (1967 SF) © Gil Weingourt

"From Hip to YIP:
The American Counterculture
-Author Unknown-

The decade that changed the United States the most was the 1960's. It brought about civil rights, women's rights, the 26th amendment, and so much more. Much of this was to due to the counterculture. The most well-known title for most of these radicals is hippie. It is a common term, but one must ask what exactly makes a hippie a hippie and where they come from.

There has never been an official rule on what a hippie is exactly, but many definitions have conjured up throughout the past few decades. Webster?s dictionary defines it as any of the young people of the 1960's who, in their alienation from conventional society, have turned variously to mysticism, psychedelic drugs, communal living, experimental arts, etc. But this definition only provides one viewpoint. There are several different ones. Some of the most widely accepted definitions are best stated by Lisa Law, Larry Caffo, and Skip Stone. Law says it is a lifestyle involving peace, love, harmony, music, mysticism, and religions outside the Judeo-Christian tradition. Meditation, yoga, and psychedelic drugs were embraced as routes to expanding one's consciousness and having a willingness to challenge authority, greater social tolerance, the sense that politics is personal, environmental awareness, and changes in attitudes about gender roles, marriage, and child rearing.

Being a hippie is not a matter of dress, behavior, economic status, or social milieu. It is a philosophical approach to life that emphasizes freedom, peace, love, and a respect for others and the earth. Probably the most common viewpoint is held by Caffo, who played with The 13th Floor Elevators and occasionally with Janis Joplin. He says a hippie was any person who smoked marijuana and took LSD.

While the definition of 'hippie' is uncertain..(see above). It is thought to have been originated in Harlem, New York. In Malcolm X's autobiography he discussed being seventeen in 1939 and observing. A few of the white men around Harlem, younger ones whom we called hippies, acted more African Americans than the African Americans. The more publicized use of the word was first applied in September of 1965 by the San Francisco writer Michael Fallon.

The lifestyle hippies led predates the term. The group evolved from ancient times, some even say as far back as Julius Ceasar and Jesus Christ. But the beginning of the modern hippie began in Germany near the end of the nineteenth century. Many youth movements were formed in reaction to a more industrialized, technocratic society. Adolf Just opened a retreat in 1896 that inspired Gandhi to begin a Nature Cure sanitarium in India. Just spoke against pollution, meat, traditional education, and many other things. These were just a few of the social trends termed as 'Lebensreform' (life reform). Others included nudism, natural medicine, commune movement, sexual reform, and liberty for women, children and animals.

In Ascona, Switzerland, counterculture resurgence started in 1900 and lasted twenty years. Some of their approaches to life were surrealism, pacifism, Paganism, and dada. Many famous people, who inspired the hippies, went to Ascona. Hermann Hesse, D.H. Lawrence, and Carl Jung were just a few. In 1903, a San Francisco newspaper ran an article telling about the people and thinking of Ascona. This was one of the first times California was exposed to the European counterculture.

Also at this same time, several thousands of Germans moved to America because of the domineering political powers taking over their country- ones that led them into both World Wars. America has always been a melting pot and the Germans melted right in. They brought in their suitcases their radical views of life and their imaginings of what America could be.

Closer to the Age of Aquarius, was the Nature Boys. This was during the 1940's. They were Americans who had taken up the Lebensreform lifestyle and were living mostly in the Southern California mountain ranges. They slept in caves and trees. They ate natural foods, such as fig, which was how they got their 'high,' in opposition to the illegal drugs used by the hippies of the sixties.

One of the most known Nature Boys was Gypsy Boots. He lived in Tahquitz Canyon with the other boys until his marriage in 1953. Five years later, he opened a health food store in Hollywood and became a health teacher. He became such a well known figure that he was a guest over 25 times on the Steve Allen show. He also performed at the Monterey and Newport Pop festivals in the late 1960's alongside groups like The Grateful Dead and The Jefferson Airplane.Boots and the rest of the Nature Boys were an inspiration to many through more than their relaxed way of living; they started a trend in fashion. Though The Beatles's haircut is known as having been obscene, it was domestic compared to les known bands from Southern California, like The Seeds. They wore their hair down to their shoulders from the influence of the Nature Boys. Jimi Hendrix and The Doors, two of the most idolized music producers of the flower child era, both were fans of The Seeds.

On the east coast at the same time were the beatniks. Men like Jack Kerouac, William S. Burroughs, and Alan Ginsberg could be found in New York City. Beatniks celebrated the arts in free form. Such inspirational writings as On The Road, Dharma Bums, and 'The Howl' were read by many hippies. Alan Ginsberg even took place in the San Francisco Be-In, anti-war protests, and the demonstrations in Chicago during the Democratic National Convention in 1968.

Acid started becoming common in the early 1960s. Harvard professors Timothy Leary, Ralph Metzer, and Richard Alpert (Ram Dass) studied the drug and almost instantly found a correlation between it and the German scientists, writers, and artists of the Lebensreform era. These professors made books like Steppenwolf , popular to read among the rising hippie culture. They also wrote their own book called 'The Psychedelic Experience,' which became known as the hippie's 'bible'.

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In general, the hippies of the 1960's were a-political. The innumerable protests and demonstrations were held by such groups as the Black Panthers, Students for a Democratic Society and the Weathermen. In 1968, Abbie Hoffman and Jerry Rubin coined the name Yippie or also called the Youth International Party. This was originally for the flower children going to the Democratic National Convention in Chicago that year. They did such high jinks as trying to run a pig for President. This ended in the Chicago Seven Conspiracy Trial accusing the Yippies and the others involved for trying to incite riots.

The Yippies outlasted the election year and became the 'political party' of hippies. They never were a registered party or took a traditional platform, but still existed. There were common stands of pro-drugs, anti-war, pro-sex, and environmentalism throughout the group, for they were hippies after all. Their core beliefs were in absolute freedom of speech and freedom of expression. Their group outlasted many of the fellow radical groups, but became weaker when Abbie Hoffman went underground for drug charges in the 1970's.

Much do to the media, people see the hippies as a group from the 1960's that no longer exist. This is not so. Being a hippie is a lifestyle choice that was made before the 1960's and is still made by many today. According to Aron 'Pieman' Kay, who famously threw a pie in Richard Nixon's face, the hippies are still everywhere- whether it be the streets of Haight, the Rainbow gatherings, the web or just when I least expect it, I will meet an old timer on a New York City subway. Furthermore, another hippie from the 1960's added. Protests are still going on for more or less the same things. And as far as clothing, there is still the Salvation Army clothing store. About the only major changes here are satellite TV, microwaves, and the computer. Hippies are more than a part of a counterculture movement, they are a recurrent subculture.

All in all what being a hippie means was best stated by Abbie Hoffman when he said:
We are here to make a better world. No amount of rationalization or blaming can preempt the moment of choice each of us brings to our situation here on this planet. The lesson of the 60s is that people who cared enough to do right could change history
The big battles that we won cannot be reversed. We were young, self-righteous, reckless, hypocritical, brave, silly, headstrong, and scared half to death.

And we were right.

Definition's of a Hippy
by Erowid
Nov 25, 2003
The term hippie (or hippy) derives from "hip" or "hipster" used during the late 50s and 60s to describe someone who was a part of the Beat scene.
Someone who was hip to the scene, or in the know.
One of the first recorded uses of the term hippie was in a Sept 5 1965 article about the San Francisco counter-culture by writer Michael Fallon.
The term was not generally used by those who were a part of the hippie culture,
but rather by those on the outside writing about them.
The term became popular with the media in the mid- to late-1960s as young people flocked to San Francisco (and all over the world-LH),
but also picked up negative conotations for many Americans ("straights"),
You know, thanks to Susan, Tex, Patricia, Squeaky-Charlie Manson's kids!!-LH

Flower Child
(1967)
A hippie who advocates love, beauty, and peace

Hippie or Hippy

[ websters unabridged ] a person, esp. of the late 1960s, who rejected established institutions and values and sought spontaneity, direct personal relations expressing love, and expanded consciousness, often expressed externally in the wearing of casual, folksy clothing and of beads, headbands, used garments, etc.

[ websters ] a person who rejects the mores of established society (as by dressing unconventionally or favoring communal living and advocates a nonviolent ethic; broadly : a long-haired unconventionally dressed young person.

[ websters world ] a person who, in a state of alienation from conventional society, turned variously to mysticism, psychedelic drugs, communal living, etc.

[ hyperdictionary ] someone who rejects the established culture; advocates extreme liberalism in politics and lifestyle

[ wordreference.com ] a person whose behaviour, dress, use of drugs, etc., implied a rejection of conventional values (esp. during the 1960s)

[ realdictionary.com ] youth subculture (mostly from the middle class) originating in San Francisco in the 1960s; advocated universal love and peace and communes and long hair and soft drugs; favored acid rock and progressive rock music

[ miscellaneous ] a person who believes in peace, love, freedom and happiness.

Hipster
[ websters unabridged ] a person who is hip. a person, esp. during the 1950s, characterized by a particularly strong sense of alienation from most established activities and relationships.

Sleeping Where I Fall: A Chronicle
by Peter Coyote

I read Peter's book staying in Sapillo State Park in the Gila Wilderness-Southern New Mexico, no water or electricity and lots of coyotes..in the midst of gigantic ponderosa pines ..this book was wonderful, inspiring and brought back a lot of memories. I Highly recommend it! -LionHeart-

Today there is a GAP in the Haight; Peter Coyote takes us back to when there was a Free Store there, and discusses its implications. He makes us a part of the experience with his lucid prose and reflective thoughts about a magical time. Mixing his personal experiences with reflective commentary, he presents it warts and all. Besides offering a plethora sixties sex stories for the mass market, Coyote offers some valuable ideas to ponder as well.

There are stories of encounters with the Hopi, who had actually managed to accomplish what the Hippies were trying to do. Stories culled from a diary that still sparkle with the verve of the time. There are stories of how communal life brought comfort and pain, and of how one can more than survive without money or a job, but not without a role to play.

The reason Peter Coyote's book is so timely and important is because we are about to reenter that time once again, but this time more as Hopi than as Hippie. The Global Village (WEB) has placed the entire world in communal proximity, and the unresolved problems of the Hippie experience will be the problems of the Internet Generation. It is the problem of the Hopi's prophetic sign that, "Spider woman will have covered the world with her web."

Now that Communism has fallen, can Capitalism be far behind? "Capitalism is dying, boy." Wall Street financier Morris Cohon tells his Hippie son Peter Coyote, "It's dying of its own internal contradictions." He predicts it will take 50 years and not the 5 his son thinks. Morris was probably right, and that is what makes this book significant. The book offers us a look at our first step in the tribal direction.

The Hippies didn't "fail," instead, they just saw it first and got started sooner than the rest, just like all artists did. For the nostalgic, it is a trip back to a bygone time. For the aware, it is a preliminary discussion about the trip of our future civilization. Take your pick, it's your trip to take.

'Humans BE-ING (1967-SF)' © Gil Weingourt

"Emancipate yourselves from mental slavery,
none but ourselves can free our minds."
-Bob Marley-

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This forked symbol was adopted as its badge by the Campaign for Nuclear Disarmament in Britain, and originally, its use was confined to supporters of that organization. It was later generalised to become an icon of the 1960s anti-war movement, and was also adopted by the counterculture of the time. It was designed and completed February 21 1958 by Gerald Holtom, a commercial designer and artist in Britain. He had been commissioned by the CND to design a symbol for use at an Easter march to Canterbury Cathedral in protest against the Atomic Weapons Research Establishment at Aldermaston in England.
The symbol itself is a combination of the semaphoric signals for the letters "N" and "D," standing for Nuclear Disarmament. In semaphore the letter "N" is formed by a person holding two flags in an upside-down "V," and the letter "D" is formed by holding one flag pointed straight up and the other pointed straight down. These two signals imposed over each other form the shape of the peace symbol. In the original design the lines widened at the edge of the circle.
Semaphore 'N'
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Semaphore 'N'
Semaphore 'D'
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Semaphore 'D'
A conscientious objector who had worked on a farm in Norfolk during the Second World War, Holtom later wrote to Hugh Brock, editor of Peace News, explaining the genesis of his idea in greater depth: "I was in despair. Deep despair. I drew myself: the representative of an individual in despair, with hands palm outstretched outwards and downwards in the manner of Goya’s peasant before the firing squad. I formalised the drawing into a line and put a circle round it." He also mentioned that he had intended its obvious resemblance to the anarchy symbol.[citation needed]
However, it is more commonly believed that Holtom merely put a circle around a symbol that appeared throughout the English countryside near airbases. That symbol was of a strategic bomber which could be seen on road signs indicating where the air fields were located. This is a much less creative and emotional explanation for the symbol.
A U.S. Army PoW discusses his peace symbol necklace with his North Vietnamese Army captors during the Vietnam War
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A U.S. Army PoW discusses his peace symbol necklace with his North Vietnamese Army captors during the Vietnam War
The peace symbol flag first became known in the United States in 1958 when Albert Bigelow, a pacifist protester, sailed his small boat outfitted with the CND banner into the vicinity of a nuclear test. The peace symbol button was imported into the United States in 1960 by Philip Altbach, a freshman at the University of Chicago, who traveled to England to meet with British peace groups as a delegate from the Student Peace Union (SPU). Altbach purchased a bag of the "chickentrack" buttons while he was in England, and brought them back to Chicago, where he convinced SPU to reprint the button and adopt it as its symbol. Over the next four years, SPU reproduced and sold thousands of the buttons on college campuses.
In Unicode, the peace symbol is U+262E, and can thus be generated in HTML by typing ☮ or ☮. However, many browsers will not have a font that can display it.
Antagonism
The fact that the symbol resembles a bird foot in a circle gave rise to spurious alternative interpretations, ranging from plain mockery of "crow's foot" or "The Footprint of the American Chicken" (suggesting that peace activists were cowards) to a number of occult meanings, such as an upside down crucifix with the arms broken downward, suggesting the way that St. Peter was martyred. Others have claimed that the symbol resembles a medieval sign known as "Nero's Cross" that represents Satanism. Alternatively, some have suggested that the symbol is an inverted Elhaz rune, which would reverse the rune's meaning, according to the critics, from 'life' to 'death'. But the Elhaz rune is thought to mean elk. As well, a commonly repeated conjecture during the 1960s was that it was an antichrist symbol: a representation Jesus on the cross upside-down. Gerald Holtom's explanation of the genesis of the symbol and his first drawings of it, however, do not support those interpretations.[1][2][3][4]

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