Modern Use of the Confederate Battle Flag and its Relation to the Punk Scene

Recently, I got into a “facebook argument” with someone because they posted a selfie in front of the Confederate battle flag. This seemed like an opportune time to write a piece going over my reaction to this incident and also discuss a little bit of history as it pertains to this extremely controversial piece of memorabilia.

A lot of people in the current political climate in this country seem to feebly try to distance themselves from the racist implications of the Confederate flag by passing it off as “Southern pride” or “patriotism” or other bogus excuses. But I can’t think of anything less patriotic than posing in front of a flag that represents treason. But it doesn’t just represent treason. It represents treason that was so extreme and vile that we had to have a Civil War to resolve it. So, as far as I’m concerned, you can take that “Southern pride” and shove it up your ass. Also, it’s really stupid to wave that flag around if you’re not even from the South. You’re just a confused Yankee at that point, and perhaps you should crack open a history book and learn a little something about the past.

Another excuse I hear a lot when people display these racist symbols and imagery is that they are just “trolling”. Maybe they are. But I think it says a lot that people who are far right or alt-right are too scared to openly say what they stand for. Instead, they hide in the shadows and use secret hand gestures and secret uniforms to let other racists know that they’re one of the faithful. For example, the Proud Boys seem to be one of the biggest offenders in this area, with their black and yellow Fred Perrys and childish hand symbols etc. A lot of these people seem to be secret fans of Hitler, but they’re too scared to wear swastikas, because they know they’d probably get their asses kicked. I’ve even had apparent Nazi sympathizers or outright racists try to comment on this very blog using fake names like “John Doe” because they’re too scared to use their real names. A while back, I was even receiving prank calls from a character who calls himself “Brent Hitler” because of a facebook status I posted. It seems like these alt-right people maybe didn’t get enough attention or hugs from their mothers when they were growing up, because they desperately want attention from anyone willing to listen to their stupid shit.

Historically, skinheads have always been a subculture within the larger subculture of punk rock. Ever since the days when groups like The Specials and Toots and the Maytals were at their peak, you could find skinheads side by side with mohawked punks. But there have also historically been bad apples within the skinhead subculture, i.e. racist/fascist skins. It seems like most skins I’ve come across in my time in the punk scene really like Skrewdriver, but a lot of them seem a little ashamed to enjoy a band who lost their way (to put it lightly). And for some skinheads, the older they get, the more conservative they become, until they’ve reached the point where they’re posing in front of Confederate flags (LUL).

Maybe they do it to “get a rise out of people”, or to “troll”. Either way, I think it’s in bad taste, and it reflects poorly on one’s understanding of history. People who forget the past are often doomed to repeat it. And I think that forgetting about or ignoring hundreds of years of the slave trade and oppression of African Americans and other minorities is inexcusable. You can’t just ignore that huge chunk of American history simply because you want to troll people, or for any other reason. If you had ancestors who fought for the Confederacy, you shouldn’t be proud of that. You should be ashamed. And you definitely shouldn’t be waving around a flag that is a direct representation of slave ownership and racist ideology.

Stay gold everyone. And in the immortal words of Jello Biafra, NAZI PUNKS FUCK OFF