Two University of Lincoln students held a “one minute hug” on Lincoln High Street on Monday. The event, which took place at 1pm, was part of a university project about community.
Sy Crampton and Adam Williams, interactive design students at the university, focused on violent behaviour in reaction to recent high-profile attacks in Lincoln. The two say they’ve noticed a general increase in violence in the city.
They have been living in Lincoln for over two years, and said that the area was “innocent” when they first arrived. As a result the third-year students decided to “get as many people as we can to spread the love and get everyone down for a hug.”
People were encouraged to bring cameras to take photos of the event. Both Sy and Adam were filming the hug, and handed out eight disposable cameras to get as many pictures as possible.
The event was organised through social networking site Facebook, where the creators first invited their friends to be a part of “Lincoln’s largest hug”. Their friends were then encouraged to invite all their friends in order to get as many people as possible participating.
Over a thousand people were invited to the event, with 169 people as confirmed guests. Even their tutor, Clive McCarthy, joined in briefly. The hope was that “random people will join in too”.
Although only about 60 people turned up, Mr Williams was not disappointed with the turnout. “I enjoyed it and I do feel happier now.”
Sy added that “the turnout was good, seeing as we had only been advertising since Tuesday [October 13th].”
The people who took part in the hug also said they felt happier. Participants who had been having stressful days joined in with the hug and instantly felt happier, they said.
The creators also have plans to hold similar events, like “a one minute kiss, a one minute handshake, or a one minute massive conga line.”