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Flash mobs are unexpected gatherings of people who connect via email, message boards, and websites. They gather silently, perform an action, and disperse. There are two main ways to organize a flash mob: giving participants a time, place, and action or telling them an event is taking place without details. Flash mobs aim to create light-hearted gatherings and do not require permits or have political motives.
A relatively new phenomenon, a flash mob is an unexpected gathering of people who gather at a predetermined location, perform an action, and then disperse. Attendees connect via email, message boards, and websites, and generally gather silently and without comment before vanishing just as mysteriously. The first recorded flash mob appears to have occurred in Manhattan in June 2003, when a large crowd of people consulted Macy’s staff about purchasing a “love rug” for a suburban commune. Since then, mobs of various sizes have appeared in cities around the world.
There are two main ways to organize a flash mob. In the first, participants are given a place, time, and action, as in the case of Pillow Fight Club, a type of flash mob where participants get together to have a big pillow fight. If crowd attendance requires some sort of prop, such as a pillow, attendees should hide the props until the event’s start time, to maintain an air of mystery and avoid alarming law enforcement. Usually, organizers choose harmless and non-threatening props to avoid antagonizing the police, and also ask that attendees not involve people who aren’t actively participating in the flash mob, to avoid upsetting innocent bystanders.
In another organizational technique, attendees are told that an event is taking place, but no details are provided. Instead, they gather at multiple pre-arranged locations where their assignments are given and then proceed to the assembly point. Arranging this way prevents news of the details from leaking out and also allows organizers to organize large and complex events.
A number of improv and street theater groups organize flash mobs including No Pants Day and Mp3 Experiment, two popular events organized by New York group Improv Everywhere. The overall aim is to create a light-hearted gathering of people to intrigue and mystify bystanders. In the Mp3 experiment, for example, participants downloaded music tracks before attending the event and spontaneously started dancing, following the instructions embedded in the songs. On No Pants Day, participants ride the New York City subway without pants.
A flash mob differs from a political rally in two main ways. The first is that the organizers do not require permits to convene. They rely on the Internet to disseminate information about the event, and attendees try to gather and disperse quickly to escape detention by law enforcement. Even a flash mob usually doesn’t have a political motive; the point is to have fun, not necessarily make a statement.
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