- Email: [email protected]
Looking for Utopia
Looking for Utopia
Patrick Halley
Copyright O 1990 by Patrick Halley All Rights Reserved Halley is a playwright, dramatist, and truck driver f r o m Detroit who wrote and produced "Werewolf of Grosse Pointe," "The Canary House," and numerous articles, skits, and irate "letters to the editor."
In 1973 I decided that I had to start writing for the Fifth Estate, Detroit's revolutionary, "underground" paper; or become a w e r e w o l f and fade into some wilderness unknown. T h e times were ablaze with change, and the world was but a tinderbox only waiting for the right match. I had been on the road, a la Jack Kerouae, for six months, hitchhiking up and down the West coast; singing for quarters on street corners from Vancouver, British Columbia, down to L.A. and in major cities between Detroit and the coast. M y little theatre troupe, "The Shadow Peoples" also took me around the Midwest where we performed wild skits and bizarre "assaults on Western Culture" on the streets, in c o f f e e houses, bars, and outdoor c o n c e r t s - - w h e r e v e r and w h e n e v e r we had the slightest opportunity to vent creative spleen. In a word, I was afire. But working for a biweekly u n d e r g r o u n d paper was a more disciplined pursuit, with deadlines, heavy scheduling, and editorial responsibilities that forced me to hone my writing skills and adapt to compromising with a collective of equally imaginative and fermentative individuals.~ I couldn't be as crazy, yet I could be more e f f e c t i v e because we had a wider audience with the Fifth Estate, and other members of the collective were very talented people with experiences in teaching and writing. One fellow, Michael Neiswonger, was a f o r m e r head of the English d e p a r t m e n t at Cuss Technical High School in Detroit; another, Bob Hipple, was the f o r m e r editor of the University of Michigan's college paper; another guy had a Ph.D. in economics, and so on, and all of us had a slightly d i f f e r e n t view
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of U t o p i a - - t h o u g h we were certain that it was "just a r o u n d the corner." I was certain that "Utopia is already here, but people just d o n ' t k n o w it yet." Via the Fifth Estate we not only w o r k e d frantically to end the w a r in Vietnam; we also wanted civil rights, e c o n o m i c justice, w o m e n ' s equality, gay liberation, ecological awareness, free thought, legal drugs, and all m a n n e r of N e w L e f t issues. We were on a tidal wave of change and were m o r e than willing to sacrifice not only our careers but our lives to m a k e the world a place where we could live f o r love and creativity and not m e r e l y for economic p r o s p e r i t y - - w i t h all of the social evils that u n r e s t r a i n e d capitalism necessitates. Working on the Fifth Estate was rewarding and stimulating but it w a s n ' t so v e r y easy, largely because the p a p e r was (and is) collectively run. E v e r y rule, e v e r y single article that we printed, was d e b a t e d and voted upon, because the operation of our p a p e r was itself a socialist experiment. Begun in 1965, the F.E. b y 1973 was staffed by anarchists, socialists, liberals, and even apolitical activists oriented by single issues. Arguments o f t e n raged into the night. Sometimes fisticuffs would come into play, only to be b r o k e n up quickly and settled eventually with m a r i j u a n a or a trip to the bar. Despite our d i f f e r e n t b a c k g r o u n d s and political orientations, h o w e v e r , our first principle insisted that we operate with no boss or e d i t o r i n - c h i e f to m a k e anyone tow the line. It worked. We fought, but we w a n t e d history to show that a socialist e x p e r i m e n t could w o r k and that's why we made it work! THE GURU COMETH I m a d e m y s e l f and the Fifth Estate w o r l d f a m o u s in 1973, in one of the m a n y bizarre instances of Detroit politics, w h e n I t h r e w a pie in the face of a r e n o w n e d G u r u . The year before, the Supreme Court had b r o a d e n e d the scope of U.S. t a x - e x e m p t laws to enable obscure religious groups to receive t a x - d e d u c t i b l e donations that previously only traditional m a j o r J u d e o - C h r i s t i a n religions had been entitled to. One i m m e d i a t e result was the rise of the "Moonies," the "Krishnas," and v a r ious f u n d a m e n t a l i s t Christian groups that seemingly surged f r o m nowhere. In August of 1973, G u r u M a h a r a j Ji, the 15y e a r - o l d "perfect master," arrived in Detroit to inaugurate his "Divine L i g h t M i s s i o n " - - a religious cult started in I n d i a - - a n d he was to receive the key to the city. The Fifth Estate was alerted of his coming by the Yippies in N e w York, who indicated that this G u r u was a hustler and a fraud, and I v o l u n t e e r e d to investigate him and his sect.
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H a v i n g been involved with Buddhist and other Eastern religions, I felt that I could at least feel out this sect and d e t e r m i n e if it was a genuine m o v e m e n t for peace or another capitalist scam. I went to a meeting o f the Divine L i g h t Mission, previous to the G u r u ' s coming, and f o u n d that the Yippies were correct. The G u r u ' s technique was to attract a f f l u e n t suburbanites into the cult, indoctrinate t h e m , and then get t h e m to donate all of their m o n e y to him, even to work in businesses that he started. It worked. E v e n G e o r g e Harrison, the erstwhile Beatle, gave a R o l l s - R o y c e to the corpulent mogul of spirituality. But I could see at their meeting that the deceptive methods of recruiting were m o r e like a p y r a m i d scheme than a truly religious function. M y friend and I were ejected f r o m the meeting for heckling the G u r u ' s head Detroit disciple. When the G u r u came to town a f e w days later, on August 7, 1973, the local press hailed him as a messenger of peace and brotherhood. His disciples (advance men) hailed him as a c o m b i n a t i o n Jesus, Buddha, and K r i s h n a , the new "God." The Detroit City Council had plans to give him a testimonial resolution and the k e y to the city, but m y radical friends and I were r e a d y to give h i m hell. At the foot of the C i t y - C o u n t y Building in Detroit, we passed out leaflets to satirize the occasion. Since this G u r u was "God," our leaflet had a list of d e m a n d s that "God must meet, or leave the U n i verse in shame." It was signed, " N o - N a m e , A m b a s sador of the A n i m a l K i n g d o m . " In compiling this list, k n o w i n g that the m a j o r press would most likely pick it up, I decided not only to satirize the G u r u and religion in general, but also to t h r o w in some anarchist concepts to p r i c k society as a whole. The demands were: "End to all suffering, pain, and hostility i m m e d i a t e l y ...Money should grow on trees...God must clean h o u s e - - n o m o r e pollution...No more w o r k - - l e t the angels do it...Extend the life span of people, with perpetual youth...Large mountains in Michigan...No m o r e g r a v i t y - - l e t people fly...No more winter...Free the Devil and all political prisoners...Abolition of all private p r o p e r t y , bosses, and government...More m o n e y for teeth f r o m the G o o d Fairy...No more p r e m a t u r e orgasms...Communications with all civilizations in the U n i v e r s e . . . P E A C E , P E A C E , P E A C E , P E A C E , P E A C E , P E A C E , P E A C E , PEACE." This was p a r t i c i p a t o r y journalism, radical in itself at the time. Not only did the N e w L e f t writers write news; we also tried to m a k e news. After our b r i e f demonstration, we alerted the m e d i a that an event was to occur with the G u r u that shouldn't be missed. In the council chambers, surrounded by gushing worshippers of the G u r u , I sat with a corsage of flowers that concealed a cream pie. When the G u r u entered the dais, s u r r o u n d e d by
aides, I came f o r w a r d with the corsage. He glared disdainfully d o w n at me, in his expensive suit, as I a p p r o a c h e d h i m , so without hesitation I launched a p e r f e c t t h r o w f r o m 15 feet that hit h i m square in the face. P a n d e m o n i u m ensued as I flew out of the council chambers. M y friends in the balcony laughed uproariously; furious disciples clutched at m y arms as I raced d o w n the aisle with a m o b of screaming "Gurunoids" and policemen following in hot pursuit. I raced d o w n thirteen flights of stairs and out the door, and lost m y s e l f in the swirling crowds of d o w n t o w n Detroit citizenry. I did it; I d i d n ' t even wind up in jail! SERIOUS REPERCUSSIONS M y friends and I had a great time watching the v i d e o t a p e d event on the evening news. I was particularly satisfied when Bill Bonds r e p o r t e d the list o f d e m a n d s on the channel 7 news at 11:00 o'clock. M y m o m e n t a r y utopia was sobered out of me the n e x t day w h e n I read the newspapers. I had carefully p r e p a r e d a statement to the c o m mercial press: "This pie should be seen not only as a protest against the G u r u , who I consider a fraud, but also against what I consider to be t h o u sands of years o f illegitimate religious authority." The Detroit Free Press quoted me as saying, "I hate authority. G o d is an authority. Therefore, I hate God." What I thought was a p e r f e c t l y quotable a n archist statement for all time was instead twisted into a grotesque statement of someone who is insane, or worse. The Free Press used this misquote to attack me in the editorial page next day as a racist and religious bigot. T h e y said that the " G u r u only c a m e to town preaching b r o t h e r h o o d and peace, w h i c h Detroit needs so badly, only to be insulted b y a misguided and confused zealot." O f course the Free Press had no way of k n o w i n g that people would p a y good m o n e y a f e w years later to k i d n a p their own children f r o m the G u r u and other cults, and have t h e m " d e p r o g r a m med," because they didn't investigate him. But they did investigate me, and I still d o n ' t k n o w if it was m e r e l y sloppy reporting on their part, or an a t t e m p t to get b a c k at the alternative press for our constant harping about t h e m and the c o m mercial press at large. A revolution is n e v e r w i t h out enemies. A w e e k later, h o w e v e r , I was vindicated, b e cause the press had to r e p o r t that I was beaten and almost killed b y two o f the G u r u ' s disciples, who attacked m e with crowbars and crushed m y skull. This was the first battle in the war against cults and represents a real "scoop" by the alternative press. Because the N e w L e f t and the a l t e r n a -
tive press were really at the f o r e f r o n t of peace and equality in the early Seventies, we had to constantly be on g u a r d against opportunists attempting to c o - o p t these trends for personal, political, and corporate gain. B A C K TO T H E P R E S S E S The notoriety of this p i e - t h r o w i n g incident helped expand interest in the alternative press, and that is one of the reasons we did it. We did it, as I ' v e always insisted, because, like everything associated with the Fifth Estate, the p i e - t h r o w i n g was a collective effort. I d e p e n d e d on others to help d e f e n d me physically, and also the p a p e r retained a lawyer and g u a r a n t e e d me m o n e y for bail, fines, and other related expenses. In fact, while I was being besieged b y howling G u r u n o i d s in the council c h a m b e r s , one o f m y comrades knocked down two assailants who would have h e m m e d me in. I would have been t o r n - u p badly if that m o b had caught me in the aisle. But e v e r y t h i n g the Fifth Estate did was a result o f collective effort. As I said, we wanted to prove that we could m a n a g e a business without a boss, d e m o n s t r a t i n g in practice one of the concepts we professed, w o r k e r s ' control, or s e l f - m a n a g e m e n t . We h a d to prove that a n a r c h y was not chaos, not p i e - i n - t h e - s k y (or in the face) idealism, but a f o r m of organization that is viable, practical, and desirable. Working on the Fifth Estate showed that I could be imaginative and daring as an individual while still f u n c t i o n i n g within a socialist group. We were then at the crossroads o f m a n y political m o v e m e n t s and groups and f o r the sake of internal h a r m o n y m a i n t a i n e d an "independent socialist" philosophy. All o f us were c o n v i n c e d that some sort of socialist f o r m of organization must replace the capitalist structure on a national and local level. Some s t a f f persons were hardcore anarchists, but some were active in C o m m u n i s t or Socialist parties. A f e w of us were e v e n liberals, working for a more benign capitalist g o v e r n m e n t . The F.E. was so fluid, it was constantly reflecting the personal evolution and t r a n s f o r m a t i o n s of about thirty or m o r e p a r t - t i m e and f u l l - t i m e writers. But we did f u n c t i o n as a classic anarchist group, in the sense that we didn't, in principle, affiliate with any outside g r o u p or party, and we did not have any c h a i r m a n or e d i t o r - i n - c h i e f . Instead, we voted on e v e r y decision, and even edited each article collectively. This did indeed make for lively a r g u m e n t s , and, I think, contributed to a creative a t m o s p h e r e , providing one had a thick skin and could d e f e n d one's own perspective. The topics we wrote a b o u t reflected this diversity and combativeness. We would publicize such events as G a y rallies, drug busts, feminist activities,
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antiwar efforts, union strikes, government c o r r u p tion, new publications, films, and art gallery openings. At the same time, we never hesitated to cross horns with other groups in the New L e f t m o v e m e n t and, in fact, considered it necessary, in our role as newspaper people, to help foster internal criticism and debate, as well as to conf r o n t frauds and opportunists on the Left. For instance, during the Patty Hearst debacle, when she declared her mission to join the S.L.A. (Symbionese Liberation A r m y ) and then joined them in bank robberies and socialist communiques, I contrived, and we printed, a "Patty Hearst L o o k Alike Contest" that savagely ridiculed her and the S.L.A. and which was reprinted in other alternative papers. A n o t h e r staffer, Bob Moore, maintained a media column that constantly rated and berated commercial and socialist radio, television, and print media. The Fifth Estate was only one of many alternative papers, and I was only one pie-thrower. Aron K a y , a Yippie f r o m New York, pied George Bush in 1974 while Bush was CIA director. N u merous mayors and small town politicians around the c o u n t r y have been pied since, and I hope the tradition continues. I won't pick up the pie again because its singular use was appropriate for the time and I find its echo in numerous performance art pieces that have m e r g e d theatre with life, but that's another topic. Besides, becoming a cult hero goes against the grain of an a n a r c h i s t - c o m munal viewpoint and would have vulgarized and trivialized the purity o f that particular moment. Thus, when that very Free Press reporter who had misquoted me called to tell me he had been commissioned by Rolling Stone magazine to do a cover story on me, I refused to cooperate. It reflects the m e r c e n a r y nature of the commercial press, and a lack of integrity, that a reporter can switch sides on an issue abruptly and without consequence to himself while his subject's very life may be radically i n f l u e n c e d by his coverage of events. The m a j o r f u n c t i o n of the u n d e r g r o u n d press was to scoop up the life that falls between the cracks of our dehumanizing, corporate mass media and to publish i n f o r m a t i o n in defiance of that press and the large corporate advertisers who influence its tone and content. The shareholderowned Detroit commercial press has Chrysler Corporation and Ford, f o r instance, who profited handsomely in the m a n u f a c t u r e o f tanks and army trucks during the Vietnam days. So the Fifth Estate people were not surprised when certain antiwar demonstrations were never reported by the News and Free Press. We could also write v i r u lently against the oil companies and the food processors, or against union busting firms that the
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News and Free Press conveniently overlooked. We would even reject lucrative advertising money f r o m companies we thought to be sexist or racist or big war supporters. Needless to say we never made any money, and that no doubt contributed to our attrition. Some of the issues we c o n f r o n t e d and prompted seemed too fringe or extreme for the commercial papers at the time, but we can see now that we were merely ahead of our time. We r e m e m b e r when nuclear power seemed inevitable and how we were labeled kooks for opposing it. We were advocacy journalists, a new concept at the time, and promoted feminism, gay liberation, nuclear disarmament, and other facets of the waves of change. We didn't start these movements but we actively publicized groups and events that w o r k e d toward progressive change when the commercial media ignored or ridiculed them. Much of what we helped accomplish is taken for granted now and our ideas have influenced the mass editorialists who are still trying to c a t c h - u p with the waves of change that occurred in the Sixties and Seventies. One of the best examples of the damage caused by the negligence of the commercial press is the present ecological crisis. It was the alternative press that warned, even screamed, o f the dangers of a mass consumption society; of o f f - s h o r e drilling, f a c t o r y pollution, and uncontrolled growth. As the greenhouse e f f e c t starts exacting its toll on the world, I get no personal satisfaction knowing that my own small efforts for ecology were ignored or scorned, but I sometimes wish I had been wrong. If the efforts of the men and women of the u n d e r g r o u n d press haven't succeeded in overthrowing capitalism or disarming the militaries of the world, they may have at least spared Nicaragua and other small countries f r o m invasion by Old Glory. We helped stall the nuclear industry. We helped the women's m o v e m e n t get respect and helped swell its ranks by covering feminist events in the early days when no one else would. The list of victories goes on, but the struggle for ideas is a continuous process and our best hope is that our contributions may have influenced other people to continue the struggle in whatever societal roles they play today. America is still dominated b y the interests of enormous corporations and by a vast bureaucratic g o v e r n m e n t that is actually remote f r o m the average working person. The newspapers in this country, already huge corporations, are themselves merely links on a chain pulled by overlapping m e g a - c o r p o r a tions that may own several factories, oil companies, and international investment firms as well. Today the media is still the "watchdog" in A m e r i c a - - b u t for big business, not the common people. The Fifth Estate and a f e w other small presses still exist, but in emaciated form, a victim
of the times. I do hope, and dare predict, that the u n d e r g r o u n d press will rise again, to greater heights and influence in the future. The ecological and political awareness fostered by the alternative media has a f f e c t e d society and we can see its influence. But a few generations down the road? New wars and new issues, plus the inevitable des-
truction of a capitalist system that requires continual growth, will necessitate another popular uprising. I know that someone will be there to challenge unbridled power and to fight against the enemies of f r e e d o m and natural integrity. I know because it has always been such fun all along, t~
Coming Soon! Special Memorial Issue of
THE BLACK PANTHER Newspaper "The Struggle Continues" Nearly a decade has passed since publication of the last issue of the provocative and informative Black Panther Intercommunal News Service, the official news organ of the Black Panther Party (BPP). To commemorate the BPP's outstanding contributions to the Black liberation struggle in the U.S. and the international quest for peace and justice, work is now underway by several former Black Panthers on a memorial issue of the BPP newspaper. Articles and photos in the memorial issue will include: Major Essays by Huey P. Newton, BPP Co-Founder Coverage of Newton's Death and Funeral Current Black Community, U.S. and International News
Statement by Bobby Seale, BPP Co-Founder BPP 10-Point Platform and Program BPP Survival Programs
For more information, contact:
Thorn In The Side Press 6536 Telegraph Avenue, Suite B-204 Oakland, CA 94609 (415) 601-0140
Reserve Your Copy Now Of The
SAN FRANCISCO
ORACLE Facsimile Edition A complete, full color recreation of all 12 issues ofthe legendary underground newspaper originally published in Haight Ashbury during 1967's Summer of Love. 420 pages, ha rdbound, archival (acid-free) paper, 10"x14". Limited to a Library Edition of 1600 copies and a collectors edition of 200 copies. For More Information Write Or Call: REGENT PRESS 2747 Regent Street • Berkeley, CA 94705 Phone: (415) 547-7602
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Patrick Halley
Copyright O 1990 by Patrick Halley All Rights Reserved Halley is a playwright, dramatist, and truck driver f r o m Detroit who wrote and produced "Werewolf of Grosse Pointe," "The Canary House," and numerous articles, skits, and irate "letters to the editor."
In 1973 I decided that I had to start writing for the Fifth Estate, Detroit's revolutionary, "underground" paper; or become a w e r e w o l f and fade into some wilderness unknown. T h e times were ablaze with change, and the world was but a tinderbox only waiting for the right match. I had been on the road, a la Jack Kerouae, for six months, hitchhiking up and down the West coast; singing for quarters on street corners from Vancouver, British Columbia, down to L.A. and in major cities between Detroit and the coast. M y little theatre troupe, "The Shadow Peoples" also took me around the Midwest where we performed wild skits and bizarre "assaults on Western Culture" on the streets, in c o f f e e houses, bars, and outdoor c o n c e r t s - - w h e r e v e r and w h e n e v e r we had the slightest opportunity to vent creative spleen. In a word, I was afire. But working for a biweekly u n d e r g r o u n d paper was a more disciplined pursuit, with deadlines, heavy scheduling, and editorial responsibilities that forced me to hone my writing skills and adapt to compromising with a collective of equally imaginative and fermentative individuals.~ I couldn't be as crazy, yet I could be more e f f e c t i v e because we had a wider audience with the Fifth Estate, and other members of the collective were very talented people with experiences in teaching and writing. One fellow, Michael Neiswonger, was a f o r m e r head of the English d e p a r t m e n t at Cuss Technical High School in Detroit; another, Bob Hipple, was the f o r m e r editor of the University of Michigan's college paper; another guy had a Ph.D. in economics, and so on, and all of us had a slightly d i f f e r e n t view
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of U t o p i a - - t h o u g h we were certain that it was "just a r o u n d the corner." I was certain that "Utopia is already here, but people just d o n ' t k n o w it yet." Via the Fifth Estate we not only w o r k e d frantically to end the w a r in Vietnam; we also wanted civil rights, e c o n o m i c justice, w o m e n ' s equality, gay liberation, ecological awareness, free thought, legal drugs, and all m a n n e r of N e w L e f t issues. We were on a tidal wave of change and were m o r e than willing to sacrifice not only our careers but our lives to m a k e the world a place where we could live f o r love and creativity and not m e r e l y for economic p r o s p e r i t y - - w i t h all of the social evils that u n r e s t r a i n e d capitalism necessitates. Working on the Fifth Estate was rewarding and stimulating but it w a s n ' t so v e r y easy, largely because the p a p e r was (and is) collectively run. E v e r y rule, e v e r y single article that we printed, was d e b a t e d and voted upon, because the operation of our p a p e r was itself a socialist experiment. Begun in 1965, the F.E. b y 1973 was staffed by anarchists, socialists, liberals, and even apolitical activists oriented by single issues. Arguments o f t e n raged into the night. Sometimes fisticuffs would come into play, only to be b r o k e n up quickly and settled eventually with m a r i j u a n a or a trip to the bar. Despite our d i f f e r e n t b a c k g r o u n d s and political orientations, h o w e v e r , our first principle insisted that we operate with no boss or e d i t o r i n - c h i e f to m a k e anyone tow the line. It worked. We fought, but we w a n t e d history to show that a socialist e x p e r i m e n t could w o r k and that's why we made it work! THE GURU COMETH I m a d e m y s e l f and the Fifth Estate w o r l d f a m o u s in 1973, in one of the m a n y bizarre instances of Detroit politics, w h e n I t h r e w a pie in the face of a r e n o w n e d G u r u . The year before, the Supreme Court had b r o a d e n e d the scope of U.S. t a x - e x e m p t laws to enable obscure religious groups to receive t a x - d e d u c t i b l e donations that previously only traditional m a j o r J u d e o - C h r i s t i a n religions had been entitled to. One i m m e d i a t e result was the rise of the "Moonies," the "Krishnas," and v a r ious f u n d a m e n t a l i s t Christian groups that seemingly surged f r o m nowhere. In August of 1973, G u r u M a h a r a j Ji, the 15y e a r - o l d "perfect master," arrived in Detroit to inaugurate his "Divine L i g h t M i s s i o n " - - a religious cult started in I n d i a - - a n d he was to receive the key to the city. The Fifth Estate was alerted of his coming by the Yippies in N e w York, who indicated that this G u r u was a hustler and a fraud, and I v o l u n t e e r e d to investigate him and his sect.
8
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H a v i n g been involved with Buddhist and other Eastern religions, I felt that I could at least feel out this sect and d e t e r m i n e if it was a genuine m o v e m e n t for peace or another capitalist scam. I went to a meeting o f the Divine L i g h t Mission, previous to the G u r u ' s coming, and f o u n d that the Yippies were correct. The G u r u ' s technique was to attract a f f l u e n t suburbanites into the cult, indoctrinate t h e m , and then get t h e m to donate all of their m o n e y to him, even to work in businesses that he started. It worked. E v e n G e o r g e Harrison, the erstwhile Beatle, gave a R o l l s - R o y c e to the corpulent mogul of spirituality. But I could see at their meeting that the deceptive methods of recruiting were m o r e like a p y r a m i d scheme than a truly religious function. M y friend and I were ejected f r o m the meeting for heckling the G u r u ' s head Detroit disciple. When the G u r u came to town a f e w days later, on August 7, 1973, the local press hailed him as a messenger of peace and brotherhood. His disciples (advance men) hailed him as a c o m b i n a t i o n Jesus, Buddha, and K r i s h n a , the new "God." The Detroit City Council had plans to give him a testimonial resolution and the k e y to the city, but m y radical friends and I were r e a d y to give h i m hell. At the foot of the C i t y - C o u n t y Building in Detroit, we passed out leaflets to satirize the occasion. Since this G u r u was "God," our leaflet had a list of d e m a n d s that "God must meet, or leave the U n i verse in shame." It was signed, " N o - N a m e , A m b a s sador of the A n i m a l K i n g d o m . " In compiling this list, k n o w i n g that the m a j o r press would most likely pick it up, I decided not only to satirize the G u r u and religion in general, but also to t h r o w in some anarchist concepts to p r i c k society as a whole. The demands were: "End to all suffering, pain, and hostility i m m e d i a t e l y ...Money should grow on trees...God must clean h o u s e - - n o m o r e pollution...No more w o r k - - l e t the angels do it...Extend the life span of people, with perpetual youth...Large mountains in Michigan...No m o r e g r a v i t y - - l e t people fly...No more winter...Free the Devil and all political prisoners...Abolition of all private p r o p e r t y , bosses, and government...More m o n e y for teeth f r o m the G o o d Fairy...No more p r e m a t u r e orgasms...Communications with all civilizations in the U n i v e r s e . . . P E A C E , P E A C E , P E A C E , P E A C E , P E A C E , P E A C E , P E A C E , PEACE." This was p a r t i c i p a t o r y journalism, radical in itself at the time. Not only did the N e w L e f t writers write news; we also tried to m a k e news. After our b r i e f demonstration, we alerted the m e d i a that an event was to occur with the G u r u that shouldn't be missed. In the council chambers, surrounded by gushing worshippers of the G u r u , I sat with a corsage of flowers that concealed a cream pie. When the G u r u entered the dais, s u r r o u n d e d by
aides, I came f o r w a r d with the corsage. He glared disdainfully d o w n at me, in his expensive suit, as I a p p r o a c h e d h i m , so without hesitation I launched a p e r f e c t t h r o w f r o m 15 feet that hit h i m square in the face. P a n d e m o n i u m ensued as I flew out of the council chambers. M y friends in the balcony laughed uproariously; furious disciples clutched at m y arms as I raced d o w n the aisle with a m o b of screaming "Gurunoids" and policemen following in hot pursuit. I raced d o w n thirteen flights of stairs and out the door, and lost m y s e l f in the swirling crowds of d o w n t o w n Detroit citizenry. I did it; I d i d n ' t even wind up in jail! SERIOUS REPERCUSSIONS M y friends and I had a great time watching the v i d e o t a p e d event on the evening news. I was particularly satisfied when Bill Bonds r e p o r t e d the list o f d e m a n d s on the channel 7 news at 11:00 o'clock. M y m o m e n t a r y utopia was sobered out of me the n e x t day w h e n I read the newspapers. I had carefully p r e p a r e d a statement to the c o m mercial press: "This pie should be seen not only as a protest against the G u r u , who I consider a fraud, but also against what I consider to be t h o u sands of years o f illegitimate religious authority." The Detroit Free Press quoted me as saying, "I hate authority. G o d is an authority. Therefore, I hate God." What I thought was a p e r f e c t l y quotable a n archist statement for all time was instead twisted into a grotesque statement of someone who is insane, or worse. The Free Press used this misquote to attack me in the editorial page next day as a racist and religious bigot. T h e y said that the " G u r u only c a m e to town preaching b r o t h e r h o o d and peace, w h i c h Detroit needs so badly, only to be insulted b y a misguided and confused zealot." O f course the Free Press had no way of k n o w i n g that people would p a y good m o n e y a f e w years later to k i d n a p their own children f r o m the G u r u and other cults, and have t h e m " d e p r o g r a m med," because they didn't investigate him. But they did investigate me, and I still d o n ' t k n o w if it was m e r e l y sloppy reporting on their part, or an a t t e m p t to get b a c k at the alternative press for our constant harping about t h e m and the c o m mercial press at large. A revolution is n e v e r w i t h out enemies. A w e e k later, h o w e v e r , I was vindicated, b e cause the press had to r e p o r t that I was beaten and almost killed b y two o f the G u r u ' s disciples, who attacked m e with crowbars and crushed m y skull. This was the first battle in the war against cults and represents a real "scoop" by the alternative press. Because the N e w L e f t and the a l t e r n a -
tive press were really at the f o r e f r o n t of peace and equality in the early Seventies, we had to constantly be on g u a r d against opportunists attempting to c o - o p t these trends for personal, political, and corporate gain. B A C K TO T H E P R E S S E S The notoriety of this p i e - t h r o w i n g incident helped expand interest in the alternative press, and that is one of the reasons we did it. We did it, as I ' v e always insisted, because, like everything associated with the Fifth Estate, the p i e - t h r o w i n g was a collective effort. I d e p e n d e d on others to help d e f e n d me physically, and also the p a p e r retained a lawyer and g u a r a n t e e d me m o n e y for bail, fines, and other related expenses. In fact, while I was being besieged b y howling G u r u n o i d s in the council c h a m b e r s , one o f m y comrades knocked down two assailants who would have h e m m e d me in. I would have been t o r n - u p badly if that m o b had caught me in the aisle. But e v e r y t h i n g the Fifth Estate did was a result o f collective effort. As I said, we wanted to prove that we could m a n a g e a business without a boss, d e m o n s t r a t i n g in practice one of the concepts we professed, w o r k e r s ' control, or s e l f - m a n a g e m e n t . We h a d to prove that a n a r c h y was not chaos, not p i e - i n - t h e - s k y (or in the face) idealism, but a f o r m of organization that is viable, practical, and desirable. Working on the Fifth Estate showed that I could be imaginative and daring as an individual while still f u n c t i o n i n g within a socialist group. We were then at the crossroads o f m a n y political m o v e m e n t s and groups and f o r the sake of internal h a r m o n y m a i n t a i n e d an "independent socialist" philosophy. All o f us were c o n v i n c e d that some sort of socialist f o r m of organization must replace the capitalist structure on a national and local level. Some s t a f f persons were hardcore anarchists, but some were active in C o m m u n i s t or Socialist parties. A f e w of us were e v e n liberals, working for a more benign capitalist g o v e r n m e n t . The F.E. was so fluid, it was constantly reflecting the personal evolution and t r a n s f o r m a t i o n s of about thirty or m o r e p a r t - t i m e and f u l l - t i m e writers. But we did f u n c t i o n as a classic anarchist group, in the sense that we didn't, in principle, affiliate with any outside g r o u p or party, and we did not have any c h a i r m a n or e d i t o r - i n - c h i e f . Instead, we voted on e v e r y decision, and even edited each article collectively. This did indeed make for lively a r g u m e n t s , and, I think, contributed to a creative a t m o s p h e r e , providing one had a thick skin and could d e f e n d one's own perspective. The topics we wrote a b o u t reflected this diversity and combativeness. We would publicize such events as G a y rallies, drug busts, feminist activities,
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antiwar efforts, union strikes, government c o r r u p tion, new publications, films, and art gallery openings. At the same time, we never hesitated to cross horns with other groups in the New L e f t m o v e m e n t and, in fact, considered it necessary, in our role as newspaper people, to help foster internal criticism and debate, as well as to conf r o n t frauds and opportunists on the Left. For instance, during the Patty Hearst debacle, when she declared her mission to join the S.L.A. (Symbionese Liberation A r m y ) and then joined them in bank robberies and socialist communiques, I contrived, and we printed, a "Patty Hearst L o o k Alike Contest" that savagely ridiculed her and the S.L.A. and which was reprinted in other alternative papers. A n o t h e r staffer, Bob Moore, maintained a media column that constantly rated and berated commercial and socialist radio, television, and print media. The Fifth Estate was only one of many alternative papers, and I was only one pie-thrower. Aron K a y , a Yippie f r o m New York, pied George Bush in 1974 while Bush was CIA director. N u merous mayors and small town politicians around the c o u n t r y have been pied since, and I hope the tradition continues. I won't pick up the pie again because its singular use was appropriate for the time and I find its echo in numerous performance art pieces that have m e r g e d theatre with life, but that's another topic. Besides, becoming a cult hero goes against the grain of an a n a r c h i s t - c o m munal viewpoint and would have vulgarized and trivialized the purity o f that particular moment. Thus, when that very Free Press reporter who had misquoted me called to tell me he had been commissioned by Rolling Stone magazine to do a cover story on me, I refused to cooperate. It reflects the m e r c e n a r y nature of the commercial press, and a lack of integrity, that a reporter can switch sides on an issue abruptly and without consequence to himself while his subject's very life may be radically i n f l u e n c e d by his coverage of events. The m a j o r f u n c t i o n of the u n d e r g r o u n d press was to scoop up the life that falls between the cracks of our dehumanizing, corporate mass media and to publish i n f o r m a t i o n in defiance of that press and the large corporate advertisers who influence its tone and content. The shareholderowned Detroit commercial press has Chrysler Corporation and Ford, f o r instance, who profited handsomely in the m a n u f a c t u r e o f tanks and army trucks during the Vietnam days. So the Fifth Estate people were not surprised when certain antiwar demonstrations were never reported by the News and Free Press. We could also write v i r u lently against the oil companies and the food processors, or against union busting firms that the
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News and Free Press conveniently overlooked. We would even reject lucrative advertising money f r o m companies we thought to be sexist or racist or big war supporters. Needless to say we never made any money, and that no doubt contributed to our attrition. Some of the issues we c o n f r o n t e d and prompted seemed too fringe or extreme for the commercial papers at the time, but we can see now that we were merely ahead of our time. We r e m e m b e r when nuclear power seemed inevitable and how we were labeled kooks for opposing it. We were advocacy journalists, a new concept at the time, and promoted feminism, gay liberation, nuclear disarmament, and other facets of the waves of change. We didn't start these movements but we actively publicized groups and events that w o r k e d toward progressive change when the commercial media ignored or ridiculed them. Much of what we helped accomplish is taken for granted now and our ideas have influenced the mass editorialists who are still trying to c a t c h - u p with the waves of change that occurred in the Sixties and Seventies. One of the best examples of the damage caused by the negligence of the commercial press is the present ecological crisis. It was the alternative press that warned, even screamed, o f the dangers of a mass consumption society; of o f f - s h o r e drilling, f a c t o r y pollution, and uncontrolled growth. As the greenhouse e f f e c t starts exacting its toll on the world, I get no personal satisfaction knowing that my own small efforts for ecology were ignored or scorned, but I sometimes wish I had been wrong. If the efforts of the men and women of the u n d e r g r o u n d press haven't succeeded in overthrowing capitalism or disarming the militaries of the world, they may have at least spared Nicaragua and other small countries f r o m invasion by Old Glory. We helped stall the nuclear industry. We helped the women's m o v e m e n t get respect and helped swell its ranks by covering feminist events in the early days when no one else would. The list of victories goes on, but the struggle for ideas is a continuous process and our best hope is that our contributions may have influenced other people to continue the struggle in whatever societal roles they play today. America is still dominated b y the interests of enormous corporations and by a vast bureaucratic g o v e r n m e n t that is actually remote f r o m the average working person. The newspapers in this country, already huge corporations, are themselves merely links on a chain pulled by overlapping m e g a - c o r p o r a tions that may own several factories, oil companies, and international investment firms as well. Today the media is still the "watchdog" in A m e r i c a - - b u t for big business, not the common people. The Fifth Estate and a f e w other small presses still exist, but in emaciated form, a victim
of the times. I do hope, and dare predict, that the u n d e r g r o u n d press will rise again, to greater heights and influence in the future. The ecological and political awareness fostered by the alternative media has a f f e c t e d society and we can see its influence. But a few generations down the road? New wars and new issues, plus the inevitable des-
truction of a capitalist system that requires continual growth, will necessitate another popular uprising. I know that someone will be there to challenge unbridled power and to fight against the enemies of f r e e d o m and natural integrity. I know because it has always been such fun all along, t~
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THE BLACK PANTHER Newspaper "The Struggle Continues" Nearly a decade has passed since publication of the last issue of the provocative and informative Black Panther Intercommunal News Service, the official news organ of the Black Panther Party (BPP). To commemorate the BPP's outstanding contributions to the Black liberation struggle in the U.S. and the international quest for peace and justice, work is now underway by several former Black Panthers on a memorial issue of the BPP newspaper. Articles and photos in the memorial issue will include: Major Essays by Huey P. Newton, BPP Co-Founder Coverage of Newton's Death and Funeral Current Black Community, U.S. and International News
Statement by Bobby Seale, BPP Co-Founder BPP 10-Point Platform and Program BPP Survival Programs
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ORACLE Facsimile Edition A complete, full color recreation of all 12 issues ofthe legendary underground newspaper originally published in Haight Ashbury during 1967's Summer of Love. 420 pages, ha rdbound, archival (acid-free) paper, 10"x14". Limited to a Library Edition of 1600 copies and a collectors edition of 200 copies. For More Information Write Or Call: REGENT PRESS 2747 Regent Street • Berkeley, CA 94705 Phone: (415) 547-7602
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