Trojan skinheads (also known as traditional
skinheads or trads) are individuals who identify with the original British skinhead subculture of the middle 1960s, when
ska,
rocksteady,
reggae, and soul
music were popular, and there was a heavy emphasis on mod-influenced clothing styles. Named after the record label
Trojan Records, these
skinheads identify with the subculture's Jamaican
rude boy and British
working class roots.
Because of their appreciation of
music played by black people, they tend to be non-
racist.
Trojan skinheads usually dress in a typical 1960s skinhead style, which includes items such as button-down Ben Sherman shirts, Fred Perry polo shirts, braces,
… Read more fitted suits, cardigans, tank tops, Harrington jackets and Crombie-style overcoats. Hair is generally between a 2 and 4 grade clip-guard (short, but not bald), in contrast to the shorter-haired
punk-influenced Oi! skins of the 1980s.
Skinheads who stand up against
racists include traditional
skinheads,
trojan skinheads, typically known as
Skinheads Against Racial Prejudices (
SHARP)
Skinheads Against Racial Prejudice (
SHARP) are
anti-racist skinheads who oppose white power boneheads, neo-
fascists, and other political
racists, particularly if they identify themselves as
skinheads.
SHARPs aim to reclaim the multicultural identity of the original
skinheads, hijacked by
racists. Beyond the common opposition to
racism,
SHARP professes no political
ideology or affiliation, stressing the importance of the Jamaican influence in the original late-1960s skinhead movement. The
SHARPs and the Red and Anarchist
Skinheads (RASH) value
direct action and self-defense against neo-
Nazis. The movement has its origins in the multi-ethnic roots of the skinhead cultural identity.
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Skinheads Against Racial Prejudice was founded in 1986 in New York City. It emerged as a response by suburban
adolescents to the bigotry of the growing White Power Movement. Traditional
skinheads (Trads) were formed as a way to show that the skinhead subculture was not based on
racism and political extremism. In 1989, Roddy Moreno of the Oi! band
The Oppressed designed a new
SHARP logo based on the
Trojan Records' logo and started promoting
SHARP ideals to British
skinheads.
SHARP then spread throughout
Europe and in other continents.
Anti-fascist and
anti-racist, the
SHARP's refer to extreme right-wing
skinheads as ?boneheads?, a pejorative term. In return, boneheads call them ?reds? (a term relating to a supposed or actual affiliation to the political left) or ?
redskins?. Neo-
nazis and white power
skinheads hate the
SHARP movement. But many people may
confuse SHARP members with
racists since their appearance is superficially similar: shaved heads, denim, lace-up boots, button-down shirts, and braces. But
SHARPs listen to culturally influenced
music such as
reggae,
ska,
punk,
hardcore, and Oi!. An outgrowth of
SHARP is the Red and Anarchist
Skinheads (RASH), formed in the
United States in 1993 by
redskins and anarcho-
skinheads.
Anti-
fascism is a political movement in opposition to
fascist ideologies, groups and individuals. Beginning in European countries in the 1920s, it was at its most significant during World
War II, where the
nazis and
fascists were opposed to dozens of
resistance movements worldwide. Anti-
fascism has been an element of movements across the political spectrum and holding many
different political positions such as
anarchism,
communism,
anti-capitalism, republicanism, social
democracy,
socialism, and
syndicalism.
After World
War II, the
anti-fascist movement continued to be active in places where organized
fascism continued or re-emerged. There was a resurgence of
Antifa in
Germany… Read more in the 1980s, as a response to the invasion of the
punk scene by neo-
Nazis. This influenced the
Antifa movement in the
United States in the late 1980s and 1990s, which was similarly carried by punks. In the 21st century, this greatly increased in prominence as a response to the resurgence of the
radical right, especially after the
election of
Donald Trump.
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