Despite the fact that it was April Fool’s Day, this event was no joke. At the stroke of 3:00pm Pennsylvania natives of all ages and backgrounds congregated in Washington Square Park in Philadelphia to engage in war… pillow war.
The national pillow fight flash mob was apparently inspired by the movie Fight Club, where men came together to strip themselves of society’s identity and reclaim their raw masculinity through bare-fisted boxing, Pillow Fight Clubs started springing up all over the world.
What I saw at yesterday’s pillow fight was basically the same thing, just gentler, fluffier and more diverse. The fight originated in London and Vancouver but the tradition quickly spread to San Fransisco and Manhattan. Eventually, in March 2008 it became an international affair.
Events like these are a happy reminder about the best parts of humanity. Children as young as three, college students in onesies, parents, couples, neighbors, and seniors alike were participants armed and ready with pajama armor, shields of duvet and weapons of fluff. Lighthearted in its nature (and also free) community events like these can hardly be described as actual “mobs”. If anything they highlight the fun and creative members of the community, drawing them out into a unique affair which serves no purpose other than silliness and play.
Platforms like Facebook exponentially increase the awareness of events like this. On the “Philadelphia Pillow Phight” event page, almost 6000 people were marked as interested in going, and almost 900 are marked as having gone. This pales in comparison to the satellite pillow fight flash mob in New York City. Coincidentally also held in a park called Washington Square, the New York Pillow Fight Facebook page marked 8,400 people as interested in the event and 1,700 having actually gone.
It’s only a matter of time before innocent events like this sport big name sponsors looking to cash in on a free ride on some viral marketing. Luckily, the Philadelphia Pillow Fight still seemed innocent of this. The only exception were two dudes in yellow hoodies who rolled up with two large rolling tubs labeled Nesquik. Maybe not the drink of choice I would have in mind while thirsty after an hour of slinging pillows, but the tirelessly hyper children and thirsty teens seemed not to discriminate against the sugary-yet-free beverage.
It was said that all pillows would be donated to the homeless at the end of the event; however, after staying the full duration of the event, I didn’t see anyone who seemed to be collecting pillows and preparing them for redistribution to those in need. Hopefully, when the page claimed that they would “give the pillows to the homeless” they didn’t mean that they’d be literally left (like liter) in the park for the homeless to come and claim themselves. But despite this mystery, the event was a blast.
Flash mobs, a byproduct of the internet’s capacity for virility, have been a fascinating phenomenon for over a decade. We’ve seen prime examples of flash mobs in everything from catchy out-of-no-where public musicals, wedding proposals, and more explicit displays such as the Philly Naked Bike Ride (an event where people literally show up naked on biked and ride around the city). Who knows what kind of events Philly will come up with next? I’m more than excited to find out.
NOTE: I spoke with the event organizer! Pillows were successfully collected after the event. Good stuff.
