Communes USA: A Personal Tour

by Richard Fairfield

Durable copy

Genres: History

400 pages, Paperback

First published July 30, 1972

Reviews

[Chloe · Rating 4 out of 5]

Very interesting book that details the author's journey going around visiting several communes in the late 60's and early 70's. As a Gen Z-er that is experiencing a grave lack of community, I was interested in seeing if leading a life in a commune is a possible option. Unfortunately, no matter how isolated I may be, I'm not sure living in a commune is the answer. People are people, no matter how you organize them. Most are not ready for the type of lifestyle depicted in this book, although there was a surprising amount of variation regarding the mindsets and establishment of the communities. It seemed like those labeled as "intentional communities" were more stable and thought-out in regards to their social organization, food production, land management, etc. I believe a lot can be learned from these experiments—mainly not to venerate a single figure-head who is often power-hungry and looking to preach their gospel. The sharing of land, open communication, and a return to nature were attractive aspects of these communities, and I believe we need to apply them to our own lives to build a modicum of unity in this era of isolation.

[Leslie · Rating 4 out of 5]

The sixties are over. Thank GAWD. The sixties communes remind me of the scene from the movie "The Russians Are Coming, the Russians Are Coming." The townspeople are having a heated discussion about the Russians, then one townsperson says, "Why can't we all just get along with each other?" and then he turns around and slugs his neighbor. That sums up the communes. And then there was the issue of Group Marriage communes and Naked Communes. The guys way outnumbered the girls. Consequently the girls were constantly being propositioned.

A quote from the founder of the commune "The Oregon Family": "It's really unbelievable what those chicks have learned to do over a fire that's nothing more than a hole in the ground. I think we're really lucky and I've been in a lot of communes before this. If the chicks aren't making it, if the chicks don't have any energy and don't want to do anything, like be chicks, you know, wash dishes, cook, then you're in for trouble because there's nothing worse than not getting your food, having all the dishes stacked up."

A review of the book "Drop City" on amazon sums up this book too: "If you want to read anecdotes about people getting drugged, hook up for promiscuous sex, then get into jealous games with their partners, and overall fight a lot, then you may find this book entertaining."

[Beth · Rating 4 out of 5]

Fascinating. Dick Fairfield's writing is fairly hilarious.