Californication (word)

Californication is a portmanteau of the words California and fornication, appearing in Time on May 6, 1966^[1] and written about on August 21, 1972, additionally seen on bumper stickers in the U.S. states of Arizona, Nevada, Colorado, Oregon, Idaho,^[2] and Washington.^[3] It was a term popular in the 1970s and referring primarily to the "haphazard, mindless development [of land] that has already gobbled up most of Southern California",^[4] which some attributed to an influx of Californians to other states in the Western United States.

Oregon

Californication as a pejorative was a culmination of sentiments known in the 1940s, typified by Stewart Holbrook, author and Oregonian columnist, who campaigned through the fictitious James G. Blaine Society against development and unchecked population growth.^[5][6] Similar groups—such as The Miller Society—jokingly promoted measures like building a 16-foot (4.9 m) tall fence all along Interstate 5 to prevent exiting between California and Washington, expelling non-native Oregon-born residents, and instituting a $5000 immigration fee.^[6]

In 1965, Eugene's first planning commission began to question decades of promotion by chambers of commerce and developers. It referred to a 1959 pro-growth development plan and rampant road building as "All the way to San Jose"—an allusion to freeways' decreasing neighborhood livability.^[6] Interstate 5 from California was completed the year before. Previously, the main route into Oregon from California was through twisty, two-lane Oregon Route 99.

Governor Tom McCall was interviewed by Terry Drinkwater and appeared on national television January 12, 1971, for his acclaimed conservation experience. Extemporaneously he said, "Come visit us again and again. But for heaven's sake, don't come here to live."^[7] Soon, bumper stickers that discouraged migration to Oregon were widely seen: "The famous radioactive vapors of the Columbia River will get you!", and "Oregonians don't tan; they rust". The banner "Don't Californicate Oregon" became the symbol of James Cloutier's line of "Oregon Ungreeting Cards", which carried sentiments such as "Tom Lawson McCall, governor, on behalf of the citizens of the great state of Oregon, cordially invites you to visit... Washington or California or Idaho or Nevada or Afghanistan".^[7]

Colorado

On November 7, 1972, in a statewide referendum, Colorado voters rejected a bond issue to fund the hosting of the 1976 Winter Olympics. The venue for the games would have been spread over 150 miles (240 km), and was widely viewed as license for unbridled development. As part of the opposition to the bond, the slogan "Don't Californicate Colorado" was coined, appearing on bumper stickers and placards across the state. This rejection by Colorado voters followed a trend in the western states to blame California-style "mindless development" for the urban growth problems experienced in states like Colorado, Montana, New Mexico and Oregon.^[4]

See also

• Urban sprawl

References

1. ^ "Books: Nosepicking Contests". Time. May 6, 1966. http://www.time.com/time/magazine/article/0,9171,901889,00.html?internalid=atb100. Retrieved April 28, 2010. 
2. ^ Timothy Egan (May 30, 1993). "Eastward, Ho! The Great Move Reverses". The New York Times. http://query.nytimes.com/gst/fullpage.html?res=9F0CE3DD1E3FF933A05756C0A965958260&sec=&spon=&pagewanted=4. Retrieved November 22, 2007. 
3. ^ Robert Ferrigno (November 1, 1996). "Kiss My Tan Line: How Californians saved Seattle". Slate. http://www.slate.com/id/2133. Retrieved November 22, 2007. 
4. ^ ^{a b} Sandra Burton (August 21, 1972). "The Great Wild Californicated West". Time. http://www.time.com/time/magazine/article/0,9171,877985,00.html. Retrieved August 27, 2007. 
5. ^ Brian Booth (2000). "Stewart Holbrook". Oregon Cultural Heritage Commission. http://www.ochcom.org/holbrook. Retrieved August 27, 2007. 
6. ^ ^{a b c} City Club of Eugene, Karen Seidel (2001). Cheri Brooks, Kathleen Holt. ed. Eugene, 1945-2000: Decisions that made a community. Xlibris Corporation. pp. 51–53. ISBN 9780738845814. http://books.google.com/?id=3C6zhhd4GBMC&pg=PA53&lpg=PA53&dq=%22james+g+elaine+society%22#PPP1,M1. 
7. ^ ^{a b} Brent Walth. "Blazing Trails in the 1970s". An Oregon Century—100 years of Oregon in words and pictures. The Oregonian. http://olive.live.advance.net/century/1970_intro.html. Retrieved August 27, 2007.