Street punk is an urban
working class-based subgenre of
punk rock, partly as a rebellion against the perceived
artistic pretensions of the first wave of British
punk.
Street punk emerged from the style of early Oi!
bands such as
Sham 69 and
Cockney Rejects, and the Oi!
bands that followed them such as
Blitz, The
Business and
Angelic Upstarts. A key band in defining the aesthetic was The Exploited.
However,
street punk continued beyond the confines of the original Oi! form with
bands such as GBH,
Chaos UK,
Discharge, The
Anti-Nowhere League and
Oxymoron. Street punks generally have a much more ostentatious and flamboyant appearance than the
working class or skinhead image cultivated
… Read more by many Oi! groups. Street punks commonly sported multi-coloured hair, mohawks, tattoos, heavily studded vests and leather jackets, and clothing, especially plaids, adorned with political
slogans, patches, and/or the names of
punk bands.
In the 1990s and 2000s, a
street punk revival began with emerging
street punk bands such as
The Casualties,
The Virus,
Cheap Sex,
Lower Class Brats and
The Unseen.
The Casualties achieved underground success in the 2000s.
Political
slogans and inspiring
quotes about social change and activism
Anarcho-punk is a genre of
punk rock that promotes
anarchism. Some use the term broadly to refer to any
punk music with anarchist lyrical content, which may figure in
crust punk,
hardcore punk, folk
punk, and other styles. A surge of popular interest in
anarchism occurred during the 1970s in the
United Kingdom following the birth of
punk rock, in particular the Situationist-influenced graphics of Sex Pistols
artist Jamie Reid, as well as that band's first single, "
Anarchy in the U.K.". However, while the early
punk scene appropriated anarchist imagery mainly for its shock or comedy value or at best as a desire for hedonist personal
freedom,
Crass along with neighbors Poison Girls may
… Read more have been the first
punk bands to expound serious anarchist ideas. Pioneering
crust punk bands Antisect, Anti System,
Sacrilege, and
Amebix all began in the
anarcho-punk scene, before incorporating their anarchist lyrical themes with elements of early heavy metal.
Anarcho-punks universally believe in
direct action, although the way in which this manifests itself varies greatly. Many
anarcho-punks are
pacifists (e.g.
Crass and
Discharge) and therefore believe in using
non-violent means of achieving their aims. These include
nonviolent resistance, refusal of work, squatting, economic
sabotage,
dumpster diving,
graffiti, culture jamming, ecotage, freeganism, boycotting,
civil disobedience, hacktivism, and subvertising. Some
anarcho-punks believe that violence or property damage is an acceptable way of achieving social change (e.g.
Conflict). This manifests itself as rioting,
vandalism, wire cutting, hunt
sabotage, participation in
Animal Liberation Front, Earth Liberation Front, or even
Black Bloc style activities. Many anarchists dispute the applicability of the term "violence" to describe the destruction of property since they argue that destruction of property is done not to control an individual or institution but to take its control away.
"No
justice, no
peace" is a political slogan that originated during protests against acts of ethnic violence against African
Americans. The slogan became associated in the late 1980s with Black protests against
racist and
police violence in New York City. The phrase calls attention to the persistent failure to hold police accountable. But the concern about
justice also extends to
education, economics, health, and more. If
justice isn?t done in the face of such chronic
injustice, the slogan says, we?re going to continue to disturb the
peace until it is. Second, the expression speaks to a basic moral logic: Without
justice, it?s not possible to have
peace.
Printed in USA
