Yippies

[Alejandro C]

I've just learned about this group and i've got mixed feelings. Some of the stuff they did was really cool, but they do things in such a playfull manor that it seems to make every protest a joke, i think that took away from their movement. On the other hand they were really dedicated, and did some amazing things. I just read 'soon to be a major motion picture' by Abbie Hoffman and it reads like a comedy. What do you people think about this form of radicalism?

[vox]

I think it's important. I agree that sometimes they got carried away, but ultimately they were able to form a broad movement. Soon to be a Major Motion Picture was one of the first "radical" books I ever read, and it had a great effect upon me.

Also, I think one has to keep in mind the time and the place. In the US, a militant group stands NO CHANCE AT ALL of gaining support. None at all. However, the yippies were able to appeal to the youth culture of the day. In retrospect, there are always things that could have been done differently. However, for a decentralized group, I think they did pretty good.

And we shouldn't forget that this book was an autobiography, not a political manifesto. Hoffman was a funny guy, and that was a big part of his appeal.

vox

[Conghaileach]

What teh fuck does yippie mean?

[I Will Deny You]

The word Yippie first meant a leftist protester who was going to go to the Democratic National Convention in 1968. The name was thought of on New Years in '68 at Paul Krassner's apartment. They eventually claimed that it meant Youth International Party. Jack Hoffman, Abbie Hoffman's brother (who swears he is important, but really isn't) claims that it meant Yiddish hippie, or Jewish hippie. But that's probably bullshit.

Anyway, I love the Yippies. I had an Abbie Hoffman quote about capitalism in my signature for months, and I used to have an avatar with Hoffman, Kunstler and Dellinger outside the courthouse in Chicago. The Yippies got the left into the news in a way that no one else could. They were ten times better than the Diggers, too.

Lindsay

[Lefty]

i like the name. i am now a yippie. i dont give a shit what it means, i just like how it sounds.

[Conghaileach]

from I Will Deny You:
They were ten times better than the Diggers, too.

Oh God, who were the Diggers?