Within the last few years, the influx of hipster gear, ideals and apparel has taken over pop culture in ways that no one expected. From American Apparel headbands to Urban Outfitters retro gear, there’s no stopping the flooding of retro objects finding their way back into present day.
Aside from the clothes, hipsters are simply kids who listen to stuff that “normal” kids don’t listen to. They watch old school movies that we’ve never even heard of and use slang that hasn’t yet made its way into our lexicon.
Pop culture has certainly adapted to the trend, namely with movie releases like Juno. Throughout the movie, Ellen Page plays a “cool” high school girl who gets impregnated but still uses clever wordplay and funny quotes to overshadow the fact that she’s having a child.
Obviously, we soak up movies like Juno because even though we don’t act like her, it’s nice to escape into the world of hipsters for a taste of the lifestyle.
The fact is hipsters are recurring models of personalities. Hipsters don’t believe in politics, question religion, endorse natural herbs and loathe all things mainstream. Sound familiar? Hippies in the generation prior had the exact same ideals, just with different clothing on, if any clothing whatsoever. Essentially, hipsters are modern-day hippies with more money and fashion sense.
The same way hippies opposed the war and supported civil rights, hipsters hate the war in Iraq and want an African-American president, all while looking super fresh in their multicolor Nike Dunks, fluorescent high-socks and shrink-fit jeans.
So next time you think about bashing a hipster, just remember they’re a generational group that is not influenced by society or social events, but rather a group that adapts to their surroundings, no matter what they may be.
Dan Buyanovsky is a freshman majoring in entrepreneurship. He may be contacted at d.buyanovsky@umiami.edu.