Shawyer dissertation May 2008 final version - The University of ...

Armed with a budget of just $15.00 for advertising and props (Hoffman,“Freedom” 48), the Yippies planned an event that would brings thousands together in apublic space. In addition to linking hippie and activist communities, they hoped that thesize of the gathering would attract media attention, which would in turn further advertisethe Yippie movement. It was to be a model for Yippie revolutionary action-theater: bigcrowds, lots of fun, plenty of participation, a loose scenario that offered room for doyour-ownthing, and the communitas of a “potlitical” convergence of the New Left andhippies. From a performance studies perspective, the Yip-In event was a performance:behavior intended to influence the audience of media into spreading news of the YouthInternational Party and its anti-war and anti-Johnson stance.The cavernous main concourse of Grand Central Station was a grand and gloriousspace for a party, especially one celebrating the equinox, because of the tall vaultedceiling painted with images from the zodiac. Hundreds of feet long, the central hall wasmassive enough to hold over 10,000 people. The Yippies planned for a big crowd: thispublic space in central Manhattan was easily accessible by public transportation, and themidnight time ensured that any one who had a day job, or made a living panhandlingfrom tourists and commuters, could attend. Standing at the center of the hall, the circularinformation booth, topped with a four-sided brass clock, was a natural meeting place.And so in the darkness of the spring evening, the Yippies entered the terminal in smallgroups, mingling with the few late-night commuters. Slowly a crowd formed, until bymidnight several thousand revelers packed the space, an invasion of youth and energy inthe sleepy terminal. The mainstream press reported that several thousand Yippies103