The Diggers vs. The Source

A commune we’ve spent a lot of time talking about in class are the Diggers. The Diggers were active in the Haight-Ashbury area of San Francisco, California during the Hippie Movement and Summer of Love. During this time the nuclear family was changing; the birth control pill was introduced in 1960 and the sexual liberation movement was well in effect. Young people were leaving their homes to live on the streets or couch surf with strangers.

The Diggers were a group of people heavily invested in the arts and social justice. They rejected capitalistic culture in favor for a more communal and socialist way of living. “Garbage yoga” was a practice developed by The Diggers. They dug through dumpsters for edible food that they would then share with the community. During this time this was a relatively safe practice; restaurants and grocery stores threw away massive amounts of food that they weren't allowed to sell or re-use. They also held free concerts and performed street theater.

While their views could be seen as progressive for that time, their division of labor was still sexist to say the least. Men were the face of the movement - meeting, greeting and getting people to join. While women actually collected foods and goods. After a time, this group fizzled out and broke apart into different naturalist and Hippie movements.

The most striking differences between The Source Family and The Diggers are the way they were organized and ran. The Source Family had Yod, while The Diggers existed in a more egalitarian bubble. This doesn’t mean that things were equal between sexes; both groups had division of labor based on gender. Men would often be headed with the evangelism and recruitment. Women would generally work in gathering and preparing food, as well as clothing and other necessities.

Music and arts were also an important part of both groups; self-expression was both encouraged and celebrated. Overarching themes of health, wellness and clean resourceful living defined The Source Family and The Diggers. Unlike The Diggers, The Source Family wasn’t interested in social justice issues, much less issues that were outside of their commune. Everything was done for the family’s betterment as opposed to the betterment of society.

The Diggers weren’t religious - another large difference between the two groups. Another difference being that The Diggers don’t exist anymore; they were very much part of the times. A handful of members of The Source Family still keep in touch, and in fact, some live near each other in Hawaii. The way of life Father Yod led his followers to believe still holds power over some of these people. It has become their way of life, as opposed to something they were once a part of.

Sources:

The Source: The Untold Story of Father Yod, YaHoWha 13, and The Source Family (2007) by Isis Aquarian, Electricity Aquarian and Erik Davis

The Source Family (2012) a Process Media documentary