Gathering of the Tribes

counterculture event

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July 16, 2026

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The "Gathering of the Tribes" was a significant event within the broader 1960s counterculture movement. This counterculture, characterized by a rejection of conventional norms and authorities, embraced ideals of peace, love, and social justice.1

The "Gathering of the Tribes for a Human Be-In," held in Golden Gate Park in January 1967, drew over 40,000 people. It featured music from bands like the Grateful Dead and Jefferson Airplane, and speeches from figures such as Timothy Leary, who famously urged attendees to "turn on, tune in, drop out". This event was a precursor to the larger Summer of Love in San Francisco, which attracted an estimated 75,000 to 100,000 young people seeking an alternative lifestyle centered on freedom, art, and community. The movement was deeply intertwined with music, psychedelic drugs like LSD, and a rejection of materialism.21

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Be-ins, music festivals, and other public gatherings
The first “be-in,” called the Gathering of the Tribes, was held in San Francisco in 1967. It initiated the Summer of Love, wherein up to 100,000 members of the counterculture traveled across the United States and converged in the Haight-Ashbury district of that city. Many came for the Monterey International…
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The first “be-in,” called the Gathering of the Tribes, was held in San Francisco in 1967. It initiated the Summer of Love, wherein up to 100,000 members of the counterculture traveled across the United States and converged in the Haight-Ashbury district of that city. Many came for the Monterey International…
Read More