> But the mere fact that Jello felt compelled to write
> "nazi punks" shows there was a problem. It wasn't the
> bands as much as many of the punks themselves who were
> racist and homophobic. Homophobia in particular was
> rampant. I was a Clash freak back in the day and I
> remember being appalled at how reactionary many of
> their fans were.
To be sure. Exene Cervenka & John Doe of X have spoken about how the LA scene went from working-class bohemians to a bunch of suburban white boys who thought that racism and rape were "punk." They tried to explain to these brats what it was they were singing about, and they got spat on. No doubt there were racist kids into punk (though in my Clash days, I think I met one), but Doug suggested that the bands/music encouraged or symbolized this, and it's simply not the case, outside of White Pride gatherings, that is.
Racism and hatred of queers was evident in the fan base, but so too an extreme conformity and tribalism. Jello sang about this as well in "Nazi Punks," and Henry Rollins trashed this aspect of the audience on the Extras section in the film "Punk:Attitude" by Don Letts, veteran of the Brit punk scene and, I suppose it should be said, African-English. One of the best docus I've seen on the topic, btw -- worth checking out.
<http://www.culturecatch.com/node/69>
Dennis