There has been quite a bit of debate recently about the legacy of the Hippy movement. As in any debate there are those who ridicule them and those who revere them. I would like to suggest that many of those engaged in this debate, on both sides, are not even talking about hippies at all.
Being a Hippy was not a hairstyle.
it was a philosophy. They rejected the straight jacket of mainstream culture; they shared a vision of the common good; they opposed war and racism; they believed in intellectual and creative curiosity - and freedom.
In the end, through cooption and exploitation there were late-comers who sought to take advanatage of what they saw only on the surface of the movement. They were not hippies! They were the pathetic poseurs who were lured by a perception of drugs and sex. The hippie subculture was hyped liked any other and those who came to it from their own self-interest should not be identified with the movement.
The Hippies of the late 70's were not burned-out stoners - they were Punks!
Generation X - short hair, safety pins and all - were the successors to Hippies. They opposed conformity and corporate culture. They valued free expression. The facade of aggression was just that - a facade. It was a reaction to their treatment by
respectable society.
"You think we're punks? We'll show you punks!" There was no war hanging over their heads, but they were engaged in a social rebellion in the same way that Hippies were.
Generation What?
What saddens me is that I don't see any comparable movement in youth culture today. This is not to say that young people don't participate politically, but that's not the same thing. A movement has inspirational leaders, artists, fashion, community, etc. That fact that there are identifiers for these previous generations attests to their impact. What identifies today's youth as anything but consumers? Maybe Pepsi had the right idea with their Pepsi Generation campaign. Teenagers today are walking billboards for logos from soulless corporations whose only purpose is flagrant exploitation for profit.
What's the matter with kids today?
My parents generation asked that lamenting how my generation was so dissmissive of then-contemporary values. I posit it today wondering why this generation is so submissive.
The reason that we have corporate domination of lifestyle, media, and politics, is that we have failed to raise children to rebel against it. Is it because we have been coopted by it ourselves? Is it because the corporate/media/govenrment complex is too powerful to defy? I don't know. I only know that if we don't have a youth culture that strives for an indepentent identity, with an appreciation for social rebellion, the establishment powers will always win. It is the energy and passion that committed youth bring to the table that renews the vitality of any movement. If we don't have a uniquely identifiable youth culture, then we don't have the heartbeat that keeps the movement alive.