Shelby Moreland

Christine Olding
Response with summary
February 26, 2015

More (Flower) Power to ya!

The hippies originated in the late 1960s and were responsible for the Flower Power
movement. The Flower Power movement was not just a phase, but also a lifestyle for the
hippies. After about 10 years of the Vietnam war, the hippies began their movement as they were
opposed to that war specifically. The hippies appearance and actions were hard to miss. They
wore floral clothing, grew beards of many lengths, and lived a free-spirit lifestyle not knowing
or even caring what their consequences would be (Cox).
The hippies were very eco friendly, mostly vegetarian, and believed in using psychedelic
drugs such as marijuana and LSD as they believed it expanded their consciousness. The hippies
participated in street theatre and listened to folk music along with psychedelic rock because it
went along with their anti-establishment lifestyle (The 1960s Hippies Counter Culture
Movement).
In San Francisco a new line of fashion, film, and literature came about and spread across
the United States in about 2 years. Allen Ginsberg was a beat poet who wrote many poems like
one entitled America where Ginsberg asks, When will you end the war? The flower children
(hippies) were known for smiling, singing, and using props to turn guerilla street theatre. The
Bread and Puppet Theatre company were responsible for making clothing for many of the hippie
rallies (Cox). The hippies were seen wearing bright colored, or tie-dyed t-shirts that were
oversized, beads, sandals (or barefoot) and jewelry that they would buy at flea markets or thrift
shops. Their outfits would differentiate them from the typical middle-classed american citizen
(The 1960s Hippies Counter Culture Movement).

On October 21, 1967 100,000 hippies gathered together and marched peacefully to the
Pentagon in an attempt to levitate it. There about 2,500 soldiers met them there. The more
profound hippies collided with US Marshals. The rally lasted about 3 days before it was finally
settled. Magazines quoted activist Abbie Hoffman in saying, The cry of Flower Power echoes
through the land. We shall not wilt. Let a thousand flowers bloom. They had a wild, catchy
appearance, and a unique lifestyle that caught the eye of most of America; they were hard to miss
(Cox). What was the Hippie movement all about? The hippies also known as hipsters were
about making war and not peace. The hippie movement really came about once the drafting laws
were put in place. At the time the government was sending about 3,000 young men each month
into the war zone, and that quickly changed when the drafting law stated that there would be
33,000 men to leave each month. The hippies, along with many other Americans, didnt like the
idea that these young men were robbed of their younger years and forced to grow up so quickly,
some even giving their lives (Protests against the Vietnam War). The hippies were a pacifist
group that originated in the United States and eventually spread to other countries. Although it
seems they were a big group, statistics show that a poll held in 1968 explained that 50% of
Americans agreed with the way LBJ was taking care of the war.
I think the idea of making war and not peace is itself a very good idea but is also
unrealistic. If you think about war today, it would be near impossible to get even the majority of
our citizens to convert to the mindset of make war, not peace, because the other countries give
us much to worry about, be angry about, and prepare for. The hippies arose during the Vietnam
War and shortly after traveled to other countries.
The world quickly noticed these people dressed in floral clothing and beards as the
pacifist group who were not only against the idea of war but also going against the law of the

land. At that time the drafting laws were in play and if the hippies were drafted, they did not go.
The hippies, and even Americans that simply refused to go to war would just rip their drafting
papers up. One of the most profound examples of this is Muhammad Ali, heavyweight-boxing
champion. Ali lost his title and sentenced to jail time for his refusal. It would take some serious
guts for a group like the hippies to stand up against the government, who has much more power
than a pacifist hippie, and refuse to go to war. Personally, I probably would not have joined the
hippie movement. Not because I dont think that their beliefs arent pure and genuine, but just
because I would love to fight for our country. It is an opportunity to help give back to those who
have given so much to our country who have made the United States the Land of the Free.
However, that is in todays day and age where I have the choice to stay or go into the military, go
to college, or work. If I did not have the choice, I may have easily joined the hippie movement
along with thousands of others in the United States.
What I found interesting about the hippie movement was that they never used any
violence, and they really were all about making love and not war. The hippies would not only
hand out flowers to strangers but also soldiers, they would even put them in their guns. If you ask
me, I think that is pretty risky because I can imagine that the government was not very happy
with the hippies, and these armed gunmen were under their rules. They had a very profound if it
feels good, do it attitude.
My life has been built around tradition so occasionally it is nice to break free from the
original customs. I admire how the hippies broke free, not knowing what their consequences
would be, and were so free-spirited. I also admire that even the people who werent involved in
the hippie movement or werent necessarily hippies were still interested in their movements and

beliefs. The hippies showed up in many poems, theatres, magazines, news headlines, and
certainly had their own fashion statement.
I can see why the hippie movement faded out after the Vietnam War. It was one of the
most majorly funded wars by Lyndon B. Johnson, and one of the worst wars the United States
has ever been in. After so much time and money is put into a movement, when the war dies
down, there was no sustainable reason for the hippies anymore. After the Vietnam War things
settled down more-so and nothing seemed to amount to the anger that the Vietnam war caused.
To some, the movement still exists today and never died but to many others the movement
officially died during the Summer of Love in San Francisco. What started out as a good idea,
coming from all over the United States to make love and peace, soon ended with starving, dirty
hippies who turned to theft, rape, and murder. It is hard to imagine what would happen to hippies
if they had just started their movement in the United States because now there are so many laws
and it seems there is more power throughout the country. It is also hard to imagine a country
where I could not live free and have the choice to join the military or stay home. It is hard to
imagine that there were laws stating as soon as you were of age, you were drafted.
It was and still is illegal to dodge the laws of drafting, but I believe that in todays day
and age things would be a lot more serious. However, I do appreciate and like the way they took
a stance with essentially their good idea to make peace against Americas bad idea to go to
war. They revolted not knowing what the consequences would be, and frankly they really did not
care, and they stood their ground for as long as they could. After the hippie movement died
down, they became a symbol for America. No one knows what the future has in store for us but
we do know that history has a way of repeating itself, so it will be interesting to see if the hippie
movement will one day come into play again.

5
Shelby,

You do a really nice job of further explaining and expanding upon the ideas you set up
within your first draft of this paper. By providing more examples, evidence and explanation you
really allowed the reader to have an understanding of this movement and YOUR response
through YOUR perspective. Your LBJ facts and evidence as a way to help explain the views on
the war and also support your own response was done really well- and so was the example of
Ali. You should be proud of this revision :)
-CO

Essay is well-supported ( using examples, explanations, details):

___15___/20 + 4

Clearly written thesis and body of the text ( essay is organized, focused and easy to
follow): ____19__/20
Structure ( you have a clear structure and new concepts are separated by new
paragraphs): ___19___/20
Informative ( the text in your essay clearly demonstrates your understanding of the
text): __13____15 + 1
Summary ( that is clear, concise, brief, independent and natural): __14____/15
MUGS:__9__/10
89+ 5= 94% A

References
"The 1960's Hippie Counter Culture Movement." Mortal Journey. N.p., n.d. Web. 23 Feb. 2015.
Cox, Savannah. "A Brief History Of Hippies." All That Is Interesting. N.p., 04 Apr. 2013. Web.
03 Mar. 2015.
Protests against the Vietnam War. History Learning Site. N.p., n.d. Web 8 April. 2015.