The hippies openly advocated the use of drugs to enhance the monotony of daily life and to raise awareness. Marijuana and LSD were their most prevalent drugs of choice because of their psychedelic properties. “Grass” had been illegal since 1937, so dealing with it was a criminal offense. The hippies used marijuana for numerous purposes, unable to find the negative effects that the government had been spreading for decades. David Solomon, editor of The Marijuana Papers stated comically in regard to weed: Like Spearmint, it aids concentration and helps you do almost anything a little bit better. It grows hair on the palm of your hands, introduces you to a nice type of black man, overcomes impotence, improves appetite, banishes excess bat, constipation, and headaches, and relieves rheumatism…. In short, it’s a miracle drug. A pot nation is a powerful nation. Possible side effects: a feeling of dreamy nonchalance, heightened sense of awareness, bursts of introspection, mellowing attitude towards one’s fellow man, especially if he’s stoned beside you. (Neville 127) The continued use of marijuana, despite legislation and parental guidelines was another powerful means of rebellion. Many people were “turned on” to the hip “scene” by marijuana. (Yablonsky 242) Smoking grass soon spread into the suburbs and the rest of sheltered America. The popularization of LSD can easily be attributed to the hippies and the self-proclaimed leaders of the acid movement. Remaining legal until 1966, LSD gained great publicity from them and drew notoriety after it was criminalized. Timothy Leary’s studies were published and widely read, almost like bibles. His book The Psychedelic Experience, and a translated version of The Tibetan Book of the Dead soon became the guidebooks for passage through a successful trip. (Westhues 40-41) Through his writing, he spread the hippie motto of “Turn on, Tune in, Drop Out”. Ken Kesey’s acid tests and his adventures with the Pranksters drew further attention to the acid movement, as it came to be known.
In The Electric Kool Aid Acid Test, an account of his adventures, he metaphorically states, “There are going to be times, when we can’t wait for somebody. Now, you’re either on the bus or off the bus. If you’re on the bus, and you get left behind, then you’ll find it again. If you’re off the bus in the first place- then it won’t make a damn. You’re either on the bus…or off the bus” (Wolfe 74). The hippies believed that LSD had the power to raise them to a higher consciousness, it helped you get “on the bus.” Hippies used acid limitlessly, tightening the bonds with each other and widening the gap between themselves and society. Americans could reluctantly tolerate marijuana usage, but after seeing the creative and frightening effects of LSD, would not accept the chemical in society. Individuality and identity are two very important ideals to the hippies.
They feel that the establishment tries to control people through routine methods like organized work and leisure. “The idea of anything organized would instantly evoke boredom and restraint in the mind of the hippie.” (Cavan 162-163) Many of these young people devoted tremendous amounts of time to “doing their own thing”. This could have been anything, ranging from creative endeavors like painting and poetry to merely sitting on the grass meditating. Doing one’s “own thing” brought the person a unique sense of identity. This gave them a different approach to finding careers than their parents tried to teach them “If you get a job or something, you’re even more conforming to the system, and if you don’t agree with it, where do you turn? So you see you kind of invent your own lifestyle” (Mills 79).
The dehumanizing effect of joining the American workforce was met with the hippies’ decision to exclude themselves from it, avoiding its negative effects. This placed them outside of the economy, separating them from the rest of society. Of course, they were further misunderstood and even despised for their refusal to work. Some hippies looked for solutions to the social problems plaguing the U.S. during the sixties. They staged massive demonstrations to draw attention and try to bring about change. Student activism reached a peak during the 1960s as bright, affluent college students fought against unfair legislation, abuse of human rights, racial discrimination, and U.S. involvement in Vietnam.
These protestors were more than just hippies, they were the children of the upper middle class. The social status of these students ensured that their message was heard by the public and captured by the media. (Westby 254) Images of angry hippies burning draft cards and giving speeches to huge audiences spread across the country. During the mid 1960s, anti-war demonstrations flooded the nation’s capital. Led by the Students for a Democratic Society (SDS), some protests drew massive crowds of twenty-five thousand protestors or more. (Young 150-151) The commitment to a common was a unifying force among the hippies, surpassing any individual differences.
The protests were very important because they were nationally televised, placing the hippie at the center of the American home, in the living room. Another group of hippies thought the answer was merely to “drop out” of society completely. They chose to live together communally, generally in rural areas, and attempted to become self-sufficient. On these communes, they participated in food and clothing production, child rearing as well as devoting plenty of time to “do their own thing.” (Cavan 155) These hippies quickly learned that survival was very difficult without the aid of civilization. A commune could not function without a great deal of effort on behalf of the members. As they soon found out, organization was necessary to keep these communities running smoothly. Because most hippies came to the communes escaping the establishment, organization was not easy to impose upon them. (Westhues 194-195) The most famous hippie community was not a farm, it was the Haight-Ashbury area of San Francisco. People flocked from around the country to experience the phenomenon of merely being there, of “being in” (Perry 29-30). The brotherhood and kindness present in the community was hidden from the American public by the appearance and lifestyle of the inhabitants.
Tour buses carried visitors through the neighborhood providing them with a superficial and confused view of the community: We are now entering the largest hippie colony in the world and the very heart and fountainhead of the hippie subculture. We are now passing through the ‘Bearded Curtain’ and will journey down Haight Street, the very nerve center of a city within a city…Marijuana, of course is a household staple here, enjoyed by the natives to stimulate their senses… Among the favorite pastimes of the hippies, besides taking drugs, are parading and demonstrating, seminars, malingering, and the ever-present preoccupation with the soul, reality, and self-expression such as strumming guitars, piping flutes and banging on bongos. (Yablonsky 200). The creation of hippie communities gave them a foundation in American society. Whether the public liked it or not, the hippies became a permanent part of our culture.
The controversial messages of the hippies and their socially unacceptable lifestyle made them targets of very much negative publicity. They were all portrayed as drug pushers, prostitutes, and thieves by the media. (Mills 76-77) The belief that their subversive ideas could destroy society’s structure and values caused people to fear them. Following the 1960s, as many of these hippies grew older, the returned to normal society. They eventually bought into the establishment they once fought against, by getting married, moving into suburban homes and buying family cars. Some stubborn individuals never lost their hippie appearance and lifestyle. Many of these interesting individuals can still be seen in San Francisco and the East Village in New York. A large number of these hippies are even conveniently located in beautiful Ithaca. Their appearance is still the same, but now hippie gear is mass-produced for the department stores. Regardless of how their lives had changed, the impression that hippies left will last forever.
They demonstrated the power of America’s youth as they fought to bring about change. The hippies taught people to appreciate nature and the beauty of the human body. Most importantly, hippies broke social boundaries, setting an example that others would follow.
Then of course we can say a few things about the state this governemtn has left us in but if i did this post would be so long you`d skip it and run to a smaller less hard work one to read..
So you see your agruement whilst colourfull to the uneducated .. and whilst being amazingly blasting to Ric the Vic was nothing more than smoke and beer now of course i could offer you advice but i doubt you` d understand it or even take the advice as offered.. left to us in a room i`d offer you some green and papers and show you how to calm down .. but then i`m a kinda calming guy and really nice .. some say ..
Love Light Peace Lofti .
