Hands Across America - Wikipedia
Did anyone else here participate? I was a volunteer and remember going to at least one planning meeting. I took posters to businesses on part of the route. I can’t remember now how places were assigned but I was in a spot not too far from my house. If I’m not mistaken, the chain was unbroken through Memphis. The area I was in had live music set up. It was a beautiful day and a lot of fun.
I’d forgotten ALL about that! I’m in New Mexico, and our land-to-people ratio meant that there were indeed gaps. I remember being in Tijeras Canyon, just east of Albuquerque, and there being lengths of rope between some of the people to make up for the gaps.
While I did not participate in HAA, the kids at my high school soon parodied it by staging “Hands Across the Library”. We all cut classes at a predetermined time and gathered in the school library to hold hands and sing. The school administrators were actually somewhat amused and allowed it to happen. Which was quite generous, considering…
The library was the focus of many student pranks at my high school. Among others were such stunts as:
Those poor librarians.
The only thing I remember about Hands Across America was David Letterman’s joke about the gathering in Battery Park in New York, and how after the event was over there was such a feeling of camaraderie and goodwill that nobody wanted to leave. So the police asked Yoko Ono if she’d get up on stage and sing a few songs.
I was part of it. The southwest corner of Detroit Avenue and W. 74th street.
At the time, I was amazed that they were able to get so much coordination between so many people that they were able to have everyone holding hands at the same time in a complete unbroken line across the whole nation. I was, perhaps, insufficiently cynical at the time.
We lived in Kentucky, and I had two little kids. Mr VOW was stationed at Ft Knox, we lived in Radcliff, and I worked in Louisville. HAA was supposed to cross Kentucky at the most western part of the State, and I wanted to go so BAD. It was a beautiful, heartwarming symbol of patriotism, something our country needed desperately.
It just didn’t work out for us. It makes me smile to look back on it, though. Thanks for bringing forth the memory.
~VOW
Didn’t participate but witnessed it while visiting relatives in Champaign, Illinois. The route happened to pass by the restaurant where we were having lunch.
I participated in a sub-HAA called “Hands Across Des Moines.” It was unbroken across the metro, and verified by police on bikes.
The thing I remember most about it, unfortunately (and I probably wouldn’t share it anywhere but here) is that afterwards, the women I was with and I went to a nearby place for ice cream. There was a very expensive item on the menu called an Orgy, and one of them asked if it was sperm-flavored ice cream. We were, like, “We don’t know this person!” (It was actually a scoop of every flavor and every topping, as I suspected.)
I still have my pin!
I’ll find it and post a photo.
As a fundraiser, the 1986 event disappointed organizers. Wiki:
Organizers had hoped that Hands Across America would raise between $50 million and $100 million, making it one of the largest charity fundraisers in history. …The total amount of donations was estimated at $36.4 million, with $27.8 million coming from individuals and another $8.6 million donated by corporations. After covering operating costs, this left approximately $15 million to be distributed to charities. The process of paying the organization’s bills and choosing recipient charities took months, and by the end of 1986, no funds had been distributed, drawing criticism from charity groups. The first batch of grants was given out in January 1987, and the last of the remaining money was distributed in November of that year.
So 41% of the $36.4 million raised eventually went to a range charities chosen after the event.
I can’t think about hands across America without thinking of the horror movie Us .
I don’t remember a pin like that, but I do remember that they wanted to HADM participants to buy a button, and the proceeds from that went to a local charity. In this case, the money was indeed used that way.
For me, it’s Uncle Albert/Admiral Halsey.
Although on a smaller physical scale, a human chain has had significant international effect elsewhere in the world
We planned to join, as the route was within walking distance of the house. But we were laying tile in the basement, with mastic and a spreading tool, and we were soon learning how hard it must be to escape from a spider web. Or flypaper. If we had made it there, whomever we linked up with would have been stuck to us for hours.
I vaguely remember that. If I had one, it’s been lost to time.