Hippy Movement
... similar beliefs would live in the same areas. Many times they would have similar religions or they would share political ideas (Turbulent 140). In the Haight Ashbury district there were two parks that that all Hippies knew well. The more famous of the two was the Golden Gate Park. The single most important event that put the Hippies on the map was held at the Golden Gate Park (Turbulent 140). This event was not Woodstock as most people would imagine, it was called the Trips Festival. The Trips Festival was a weeklong festival designed to Celebrate the LSD experience. There were all kinds of experimentation. For the most part people were just having a good old time (Haight 3). Another interesting thing about hippies was there flagrant use of illegal drugs. None was more used then marijuana. The number of Marijuana users increased dramatically from 1960-1970 (Turbulant 139). The majority of these new users were from 12 years old to college seniors (Holland 80). Although most hippies were involved with the counterculture for what they represented some were just in it for the parties. To some Hippies Drugs were the most important part of their lives. Although Marijuana was by far the most popular, LSD was also heavily used (Holland 82). Many people loved LSD. One group went as far as to make a religion out of LSD (Tracinski 1) LSD was said to help you “tune in” in touch with your surroundings (Holland 80). However this was not always the case. When you use LSD the experience is called a “trip”. Most of the time you have “good trips” but on a rare occasion you can have a “bad trip” (Tracinski 1). This is when you basically go crazy. You can become suicidal, and some people never come back from these trips (Holland 83). In addition Hippies were known for listen to interesting music. Many hippies were actually musicians themselves. They used music as a way to get out there thoughts, emotions, and ideas. One of the most influential artists of the time was Bob Dylan. He expressed what he was going though with his songs. Many hippies thought of him as a spokes person for their beliefs (Haight 2). Many themes for songs were based on drugs. Jimmy Hendrix's "Purple Haze" is about marijuana. "Lucy in the Sky with Diamonds," is a Beatles song about LSD. The Grateful Dead also took part in the fad with their song "Casey Jones," with lyrics such as "High on Cocaine" and "You better watch your Speed." During this era there were many songs similar to these (Haight 3). Furthermore Hippies had and individualistic image and did some out of the ordinary things. It was common for hippies in the Haight Ashbury District to put a nickel in a parking meter, then set up blankets and lie down in the space for a half hour. The things they did were not normal behavior. They made people stop and take a second look. The second look may also be attributed to their image. Many hippies had long hair done up with braids or colorful beads. They also wore flowers and tie-dye shirts. The piece sign was there trademark and it was seen everywhere they went. They were a hard group to miss (Counter-Culture 1). On a different note hippies easy going attitudes and fun lifestyles were put away when the topic of politics arose. Had the strong feelings for the Vietnam War. They did this in many ways including musical shows, pacifist folk songs, and through peaceful sit-ins (US 1). But none of their actions were more seen and heard of then their protests and rallies. The Hippies were aware that the war was being lost and that thousands of American soldiers were dying. To show ther...