People of the rainbow : a nomadic utopia / Michael I. Niman.

Format:

Book

Author/Creator:

Niman, Michael I.

Language:

English

Subjects (All):

Rainbow Family of Living Light.

Utopias--History--20th century.

Utopias.

History.

Nonviolence--History--20th century.

Nonviolence.

Social history--1970-.

Social history.

Physical Description:

xiv, 274 pages : illustrations ; 23 cm

Edition:

First edition.

Other Title:

Rainbow

Place of Publication:

Knoxville : University of Tennessee Press, [1997]

Summary:

Since 1972, the Rainbow Family of Living Light, a loosely organized and anarchistic nomadic community, has been holding large gatherings in remote forests to pray for world peace and create a model of a functioning utopian society. In People of the Rainbow, Michael I. Niman offers the first comprehensive study of this countercultural group, also known as the Rainbow Nation or Rainbow Family. Niman's insightful and compelling profile describes the origins and recent history of the Rainbows and explains the eclectic philosophy of environmentalism, feminism, peace activism, group sharing, libertarianism, and consensus government they espouse. A fictional re-creation of a day in the life of a Rainbow character named Sunflower begins the book, illustrating events that might typically occur at an annual North American Rainbow Gathering. Using interviews with Rainbows, content analysis of media reports, participant observation, and scrutiny of government documents relating to the group, Niman presents a complex picture of the Family and its relationship to mainstream culture - called "Babylon" by the Rainbows. Niman also looks at internal contradictions within the Family and examines members' problematic relationship with Native Americans, whose culture and spiritual beliefs they have appropriated. The nomadic nature of the Rainbow Family has long exasperated the U.S. government - especially the Forest Service - and has baffled the media. Niman places the Rainbow Family's gatherings in a historical context by framing the group's activities in terms of the long tradition of intentional communities and utopian experimentation within the United States. Concluding with reflections on the successes and limitations of the Rainbow movement, People of the Rainbow provides an extensive ethnography of this intriguing subculture as well as fresh insights into the ongoing legacy of utopian communalism.

Contents:

Sunflower's day : July 3

Roots, rock, rainbow

"The way we make decisions is more important than the decisions we make" : the Rainbow Family Council

The nuts and bolts of making a rainbow : rainbow infrastructure

People of the rainbow

Violence and peace

Fakelore

The mediated rainbow : the American media look at the rainbow family

Leave only smiles : land stewardship and community relations

The rainbow and the U.S. government

Conclusion : endless summer.

Notes:

Includes bibliographical references (pages [249]-266) and index.

ISBN:

0870499882

0870499890

OCLC:

36330905