Hippies and "Hippies"
Oct. 10th, 2011 12:42 pm![[personal profile]](https://www.dreamwidth.org/img/silk/identity/user.png){kind=small}
emberleoWhen I hear Hippie, this is what I hear:
"Along with the New Left and the American Civil Rights Movement, the hippie movement was one of three dissenting groups of the 1960s counterculture.[13] Hippies rejected established institutions, criticized middle class values, opposed nuclear weapons and the Vietnam War, embraced aspects of Eastern philosophy,[18] championed sexual liberation, were often vegetarian and eco-friendly, promoted the use of psychedelic drugs which they believed expanded one's consciousness, and created intentional communities or communes. They used alternative arts, street theatre, folk music, and psychedelic rock as a part of their lifestyle and as a way of expressing their feelings, their protests and their vision of the world and life. Hippies opposed political and social orthodoxy, choosing a gentle and nondoctrinaire ideology that favored peace, love and personal freedom,[19][20]... Hippies perceived the dominant culture as a corrupt, monolithic entity that exercised undue power over their lives, calling this culture "The Establishment", "Big Brother", or "The Man".[22][23][24] Noting that they were "seekers of meaning and value", scholars like Timothy Miller have described hippies as a new religious movement.[25]"
Ref: Yes, I know Wikipedia isn't a great reference - it's saying what I already knew, eh?
Here's the thing, I was raised by Hippies. The kind who were focused on anti-war activism, civil disobedience and protest music to promote civil rights, feminism, deeper meaning through mysticism, appreciation for nature, and communalism. Okay, yeah, and super-long hair, free love, and experimental psychedelics - which I quite frankly have a lot of respect for as well, although I haven't followed suit on that last one unless you count my non-chemically-induced trance work. As Hippies go, I gather my parents were relatively conservative in their behavior, but the whole point was that they were very liberal, to the point of radical in their values.
So I'm getting progressively more and more irritated at hearing people who actually agree with and value what the Hippies successfully promoted characterizing them as patchouli-doused potheads with some combination of lazy/homeless and/or fluffy/new-aged added in, which is what I've heard from multiple independent sources amongst my friends this week alone - although it happens that nobody was complaining about the free love factor...
A common complaint is that folks accuse them of being Hippies because they have long hair. Y'know, I get that a lot too. Even when it's meant as an insult, I take it as a compliment.
You know where I see Hippies today?
Occupying Wall Street.
-E-
"Along with the New Left and the American Civil Rights Movement, the hippie movement was one of three dissenting groups of the 1960s counterculture.[13] Hippies rejected established institutions, criticized middle class values, opposed nuclear weapons and the Vietnam War, embraced aspects of Eastern philosophy,[18] championed sexual liberation, were often vegetarian and eco-friendly, promoted the use of psychedelic drugs which they believed expanded one's consciousness, and created intentional communities or communes. They used alternative arts, street theatre, folk music, and psychedelic rock as a part of their lifestyle and as a way of expressing their feelings, their protests and their vision of the world and life. Hippies opposed political and social orthodoxy, choosing a gentle and nondoctrinaire ideology that favored peace, love and personal freedom,[19][20]... Hippies perceived the dominant culture as a corrupt, monolithic entity that exercised undue power over their lives, calling this culture "The Establishment", "Big Brother", or "The Man".[22][23][24] Noting that they were "seekers of meaning and value", scholars like Timothy Miller have described hippies as a new religious movement.[25]"
Ref: Yes, I know Wikipedia isn't a great reference - it's saying what I already knew, eh?
Here's the thing, I was raised by Hippies. The kind who were focused on anti-war activism, civil disobedience and protest music to promote civil rights, feminism, deeper meaning through mysticism, appreciation for nature, and communalism. Okay, yeah, and super-long hair, free love, and experimental psychedelics - which I quite frankly have a lot of respect for as well, although I haven't followed suit on that last one unless you count my non-chemically-induced trance work. As Hippies go, I gather my parents were relatively conservative in their behavior, but the whole point was that they were very liberal, to the point of radical in their values.
So I'm getting progressively more and more irritated at hearing people who actually agree with and value what the Hippies successfully promoted characterizing them as patchouli-doused potheads with some combination of lazy/homeless and/or fluffy/new-aged added in, which is what I've heard from multiple independent sources amongst my friends this week alone - although it happens that nobody was complaining about the free love factor...
A common complaint is that folks accuse them of being Hippies because they have long hair. Y'know, I get that a lot too. Even when it's meant as an insult, I take it as a compliment.
You know where I see Hippies today?
Occupying Wall Street.
-E-
(no subject)
Date: 2011-10-10 08:38 pm (UTC)(no subject)
Date: 2011-10-10 08:46 pm (UTC)(no subject)
Date: 2011-10-11 04:36 am (UTC)(no subject)
Date: 2011-10-19 10:54 am (UTC)You're not someone I would have expected that from. I wouldn't specifically expect the contrary, mind you, I just wouldn't have thought "Yeah, I bet Techno is on the same wavelength with me on this one", you know?
-E-
(no subject)
Date: 2011-10-11 10:17 pm (UTC)Peace, love, harmony, and getting the heck over ourselves. It's a good Path, in my view!
Light and laughter,
SongCoyote
(no subject)
Date: 2011-10-19 10:55 am (UTC)Or something?
:D
-E-