The Yippies, a more radical faction of the counterculture movement of the 1960s, used guerrilla theater and public pranks to draw attention to their causes. They planned a “Festival of Life” outside the Democratic National Convention in Chicago in 1968, but clashes with police turned violent. Founding members Abbie Hoffman and Jerry Rubin were later indicted for conspiracy to incite a riot. The Yippies became fragmented in the 1970s, and their impact on American politics has been muted in recent years.
The counterculture movement of the 1960s did not always present a united front politically. Many who embraced the peaceful elements of the hippie lifestyle weren’t particularly eager to face the “system” head on. Other factions, such as the Students for a Democratic Society (SDS), were often all too ready to use physical force and mob power to achieve political goals. Between these two camps were members of the International Youth Party, more commonly known as the Yippies. Founding members of the Yippies included Abbie Hoffman, his wife Anita and Jerry Rubin.
Yippies were more likely to use guerrilla theater or public pranks to draw attention to their causes. Although the yippies were more radicalized than the hippies, most members and associates pushed the envelope at organized protests and sit-ins. Inspired by the humorous rants of Abbie Hoffman, the Yippies created absurd political manifestos suggesting unbelievable acts of civil disobedience. Suggestions of putting LSD in a city’s water supply or levitating the Pentagon from a circle of Yippies were typical. Most of the literature produced by the Yippies consisted of obscenity-laced diatribes against mainstream society, but it made few serious calls for militant action.
By 1968, the Yippies were ready to push for radical change in the American political machine. The Yippies planned to hold a “Festival of Life” in the park outside the Democratic National Convention in Chicago. In an effort to present a united front, prominent members of the Yippies, such as Jerry Rubin and Abbie Hoffman, have agreed to meet with leaders of other counterculture groups, including the militant SDS and the National Mobilization Committee (MOBE), a grassroots protest movement. These meetings, which rarely resulted in any kind of consensus between the factions, were also attended by undercover agents of the Federal Bureau of Investigation (FBI).
The 1968 Democratic National Convention in Chicago proved to be a mixed bag for the Yippies. They managed to nominate a pig named Pigasus as president, and several Democratic leaders appeared briefly at the rally sites. However, Chicago Mayor Richard Daley has also called for an increase in security forces, including riot police and the National Guard.
Clashes between protesters and policemen became extremely violent. A number of Yippies have been injured or arrested, including Abbie Hoffman and Jerry Rubin. Months after the convention, a federal grand jury indicted Hoffman, Rubin and six other protest leaders with conspiracy to incite a riot. The legal proceedings became known as the Chicago Seven trial.
The Yippies became increasingly fragmented during the 1970s, although several underground magazines published in New York City managed to keep the legendary past of the Yippies alive. A new generation of Yippies still maintains a presence on Bleecker Street, but their impact on American politics has been muted in recent years. Founding member Abbie Hoffman, perhaps disillusioned with the apathy of 1980s American youth, committed suicide in 1989.
Jerry Rubin reneged on much of his actions as a radicalized youth, choosing instead to embrace capitalism as a legitimate businessman in the 1980s. Rubin died in 1994 after being hit by a car. Many surviving Yippies still espouse the same values they held in the 1960s, but are now working for change from within the system.
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