Who Were The Hippies? (en Inglés) - Bella Harry

Who were those colourfully dressed young radical folk who emerged in the 1960s in America? Those counter-cultural guys and gals who wanted to change the world for the better. The hippie movement grew out of societal frustration with endless war and the regulatory system which prevailed throughout much of the world. Most of the hippies had genuine goals to make the world a better, more enlightened place. They thought differently and believed that the traditions and rules of the past were holding new ideas back. Many like-minded people gravitated towards the Haight Ashbury district in San Francisco, where cheap rents and run down properties were available for the newcomers. Musicians and other creative types continued to arrive and young people seeking something different, made their way to California dreaming of love, peace and freedom. Illegal drugs were readily available. It was a good idea at the time, but unfortunately along with the great music and fresh dreamy thinking, along came the manipulative charismatics, misfits and crazies, happy to exploit the naïve hippies. Hard drugs and lifestyles tainted by excess, addiction and premature death for many. The utopia never quite materialised. This lavishly illustrated book seeks to explore the flower power people and their attempt at a peaceful revolution which quickly went sour, charting also defining moments in the lifestyle, such as the Woodstock festival, the communes and the evolution of the hippy trail to the far east.