The Hippie Era Cordially Explained
May 20th, 2008 by Chris Channing
The hippie movement was started in the 1960’s timeframe. Hippie derived from the terms hipster and hip. Hipster first referred to some beatniks who moved into the Haight-Ashbury region of San Francisco. They set up their own communities, indulged in the sexual revolution, listened to primarily psychedelic rock, and used drugs to expand their mind and conscious.
The Hippie Apperance
Hippies wanted to free themselves from the restrictions of society; by doing so they would choose their own ways and try to find new meanings to life. Hippies dressed differently from societal norms as an expression of independence. The way hippies dressed made it easy for them to recognize one another and their clothing was a symbol of respect for individual rights.
Hippies both of the male and female gender generally wore jeans and had long hair. Both genders also primarily wore sandals or no shoes at all. The men were often bearded, and the women wore little, if any, makeup and did not wear bras. Hippies made most of their clothes such as tie-dyed shirts. Clothing they did not make themselves they normally bought from flea markets and second-hand shops. Hippies were also known for wearing beaded necklaces, headbands, and Native American jewelry.
Common Hippie Transportation
Hippies were known to travel by school busses, VW busses, and hitchhiking. Most hippies would paint psychedelic artwork over the original paint of school busses. They enjoyed traveling in large school busses because it enabled them to travel with a large amount of their friends. Hippies who rode around in VW busses often changed the Volkswagen symbol into a peace sign. Hippies who were more concerned about the environment hitchhiked. They also saw hitchhiking as a way to meet new people through their travels.
Hippies indulged in drugs and hallucinogens. They felt that by doing drugs it allowed them to open their mind and spirit. Most hippies smoked cannabis, or marijuana. Before long hippies began taking hallucinogens such as LSD, psilocybin, and mescaline. Some hippies even took amphetamines and opiates. Most hippies, including the ones that used them, saw amphetamines and opiates as harmful and addictive so they began to scorn them.
Hippies believed in peace and pacifistic ideals. Large groups of hippies participated in non-violent political demonstrations. Hippies went to civil rights marches, performed protests, held anti-Vietnam War demonstrations, and burned draft cards. There were peace demonstration hippies and there were also hippies that preferred anti-authority and street theater demonstrations. The back to land movement, alternative energy, cooperative business enterprises, free press movement, and organic farming were a few political movements that hippies participated in.
Today there are still a large number of hippies. Protests and anti-war parades are still held by hippies and other people. Hippies still attend and hold festivals, some which have been around since the first hippies originated. The Starwood Festival and the Burning Man festival are two major festivals that have been held since the 1960’s and still go on today. Hippie fashion from the 1960’s is still being used today. Music created by and listened to by hippies is still popular in today’s society. The lifestyle of the hippies is still around to this day and is likely to continue for sometime.
