Labour, leisure, poverty and protest: the 1968 Poor People’s Campaign as a case study

Abstract

Social movements exist in a liminal space between labour and leisure. Movements require an inordinate amount of work – mobilising communities, studying policy issues, raising funds, organising events and participating in direct action – but protesting can also be fun. Demonstrations engender community through singing, shouting, marching and confronting authority figures. Activists often pass up typical leisure activities and take time off of work to protest. This article examines the 1968 Poor People’s Campaign (PPC) to understand how people engage in both labour and leisure when participating in social movements. During the summer of 1968, a racially, geographically and politically diverse coalition of poor people caravanned to Washington, DC, and built a temporary city where they lived in wooden A‐frame huts for over six weeks in an attempt to expose poverty. Volunteers provided participants with social services and basic necessities they lacked at home, while participants conducted daily protests at nearby government agencies, demanding assistance for the basic needs of housing, food and jobs. While participants suffered under gruelling conditions – living in the summer heat and muddy conditions due to torrential rains – many have recounted how pleasurable the experience was. Most participants had never travelled beyond their home state, and the PPC provided participants with a free trip to the nation’s capital, three square meals a day, a chance to meet new people, and the opportunity to unite with other poor people and demand justice.