.:.:.:.:RTTP.Mobile:.:.:.:.
[<--back] [Home][Pics][News][Ads][Events][Forum][Band][Search]
full forum | bottom

jump pages:[all|1|2]
jump pages:[all|1|2]

---

Reply
[login ]
SPAM Filter: re-type this (values are 0,1,2,3,4,5,6,7,8,9,A,B,C,D,E, or F)
you are quoting a heck of a lot there.
[QUOTE]blah blah blah[/QUOTE] to reply to Horror_Tang.
Please remove excess text as not to re-post tons
message
[QUOTE="Horror_Tang:700644"][FONT=XXL]Brotherhood By Horror Tang For Sociology 395-C Hate Crime in America We all know our local neighborhood Skinhead. He's the guy with the freshly shaved head, an over priced flight jacket, imported Doc Martens on his feet and a nice trendy Fred Perry shirt. His body is covered in tattoos and his face appears to be one filled with utter contempt for those around him. Just a glance and you know what he stands for and what agenda he is pushing. He is proud to be white and hates anyone that stands in his way to creating a Skinhead utopia. Blacks, Jews, homosexuals and other ethnic and racial minorities better watch out. The Ku Klux Klan is not coming to get you; it is your local neighborhood Skinhead that is looking to destroy all you hold precious. In this paper, we will look at the rise of Nazi Skinheads in America. In order to thoroughly do this we will have to do several things. First, we will need to look at the origins of Skinhead culture. Second, we will look at the prevalence of hate crimes committed by Nazi Skinheads, or at least those claiming to be Skinheads. Finally, we will look at ways to stop the Nazi Skinhead movement in America and actual steps that have been taken over the years to combat the problem. Is it up to the government? Is it up to the police? Is it up to the average citizen? Is it up to the true Skinheads to police their own? The main obstacle we will face in completing our work is that all writings on Skinheads are markedly different and appear to have very little if any common ground. Hopefully, we will be able to shed some light on the subject. The roots of Skinhead culture started in Great Britain after World War II. The first group that set the basis for Skinhead culture was the Mods, short for modernists. Mod is a direct outgrowth of Post War Britain, when all of a sudden teenagers had disposable income and a desire for an identity beyond schoolboy or working man. This strive for identity led to using their income to look better, act smarter and have more fun than their elders, and to make it known that they were a force to be reckoned with, and that they had a voice and influence, especially in the marketplace (Herbert, 1999). Skinhead culture developed further within the sudden influx of Jamaicans. During the '50s and '60s many Jamaicans and other West Indies immigrated to the UK. In addition to the Mod influence Skinheads adopted the Rude Boy music, tough street-level attitude and various aspects of their fashion (Herbert, 1999). As time progressed Skinheads began to set themselves apart from their Mod counterparts. Gone were the fancy dress and upper-class identity. A more violent group, they began shaving their heads so when the got into fights no one could grab their hair. Others argue that Skinheads shaved their heads to keep lice from being a problem. Their style of dress also became quite different, adopting a more working-class look with blue jeans, steel-toed boots. Violence was most often directed at hippies and the disco generation that was all around them. Their musical taste changed over time and followed more along the lines of the punk scene, while still maintaining their early ska favorites such as Desmond Dekker and Bob Marley and The Wailers. In time Skinhead music truly defined its own sound with the development of street punk which later became to be known as Oi! music. The name came mostly from the constant use of the word in the majority of the songs by the Cockney Rejects. Oi! in itself was a reaction to watering down of the punk scene by art students, much like it has been watered down in the United States over the last 15 years. As societal and political lines had divided the Skins from the Mods, political lines would soon divide the Skinhead movement into different factions. By the late 70's the National Front, Britain's National Socialist party, had invaded the Skinhead movement. Kids were recruited as street soldiers for NF. Since Skinheads were already a violent breed, the NF decided that if their young recruits adopted the Skinhead appearance, the might benefit from the reputation. It was at this point that racism permeated the Skinhead cult without the consent of its members (Herbert, 1999). Skinheads were now finding themselves as part of the far-left and far-right. The Right pushed their racial politics while the Left stayed in touch with traditional Skinhead culture, rallying for the cause of the working-class. It was this strong sense of nationalism that fueled the majority of Skinhead violence after the split. With many of the working-class Skinheads unemployed and disenfranchised, blame needed to be placed somewhere else. “At the same time, new waves of immigrants were arriving, primarily from the West Indies and Pakistan. As in the United States, newcomers became easy scapegoats to blame for financial woes. Race riots became common” (Gerstenfeld p.20). During the early to mid-1980's Skinhead culture made its way across the Atlantic to the United States. The music was hardcore punk, a more aggressive brother to punk music, by such legendary bands as Agnostic Front and Warzone, both members of the notorious Lower East Side Crew in New York City. Early American Oi! bands like the Anti-Heros and Iron Cross also helped develop Skinhead culture in America. Skinhead culture would come to the forefront in the late 1990's when the Dropkick Murphy's emerged. Like the Dropkick Murphy's this resurgence would reach its peak and disappear into the shadows. Far from the true blue-collar movement, Dropkick Skins, as they often referred to by older Skinheads were mostly comprised of suburban white kids with healthy bankrolls and happy families. For the most part, Skinheads were far from racist and were just a bunch of working-class guys trying to get by, pass time and have a good time among their brothers. Oddly enough, the path of the Skinhead movement would follow along the same lines of their British counterparts. Over time American Skinheads would be taken in by a strong sense of nationalism and became easy targets for white nationalist groups. Some did indeed join the ranks, but the majority of American Skinheads stayed away from the politics and focused on the music and the brotherhood. However, that is not the image portrayed of the average Skinhead. “The media played an important role in increasing the Skinhead's notoriety. In the late 1980's Skinheads appeared on talk shows such as Oprah and Geraldo” (Gerstenfeld p.115). The media would have us think that Nazi Skinheads are out there waiting to start a race war. The numbers are exaggerated to be in the ten of thousands, when in all honesty comprises only a small percentage of that. A flight jacket and shaved head does not make someone a Nazi Skinhead. In fact, most that identify themselves as Skinheads are far from it. They are most often lost little sheep looking for an identity; any identity. Most do not even believe their own rhetoric and will often admit so with a few drinks in their system. Many Skinheads say they hate anyone non-white, but often have family members who are of different races. Others sleep under a Nazi flag at night while spending their days with their Puerto Rican friends. Nazi Skinheads will advertise who they are and what they stand for in this world. Their flight jackets will be adorned with symbols for white pride with some often brave enough, maybe stupid is a better word, to have swastikas on their jackets. Others may even take it a step further and have these symbols of hate tattooed on their bodies for all to see. However, most of these "brave soldiers" will place these tattoos where no one can see them unless they were to catch them coming out of the shower. The prevalence of hate crimes committed by Nazi Skinheads is actually quite small in comparison to the total number of hate crimes committed each year. “J. Levin (2002) estimated that no more than 5% of hate crimes are committed by members of hate groups” (Dunbar, in press). With Nazi Skinheads making up approximately 6% of the known hate groups (Southern Poverty Law Center 2004), the number of hate crimes committed by Nazi Skinheads is miniscule in comparison to all hate groups. In fact, the average hate crime offender has no affiliation with any hate groups. In recent years, a consistent, if incomplete, picture of the typical hate crime offender has emerged. He is young, white, and male; he does not come from an especially impoverished background; he has little or no contact with the criminal justice system; and he does not belong to an organized hate group (Craig, 2002; Dunbar, in press). The Nazi Skinhead gives hate a face that the general public can place its wrath toward. Although most hate crimes are committed by the average young, white male, Americans can sleep better at night knowing that it is not their own child that could be responsible for such acts. Despite the lack of hate crimes committed by Nazi Skinheads, they usually get the most press coverage and by no means are to be overlooked or dismissed. Perhaps if it were not for crimes committed by Nazi Skinheads then hate crimes would receive even less news coverage. Violence perpetrated by Skinheads went either unnoticed or were deemed minimal until the Southern Poverty Law Center's Klanwatch “decade review” Hate, Violence and White Supremacy, 1980-1990 listed two Skinhead assaults occurring during the spring of 1986, in Atlanta (Moore, p.5). In 1988, several Portland, Oregon Skinheads beat an Ethiopian man to death with a baseball bat. White Aryan Resistance (WAR) had been busy in Portland rallying local Skinheads to their cause for weeks prior to the attacks, and WAR representatives had been in contact with the perpetrators just hours before the attack (Van Biema, p.41). In the R.A.V. v. St. Paul (1992) case, a teenage Skinhead was prosecuted for burning a crudely made cross in the yard of a Black family. A local ordinance labeled such an act as illegal hate speech. The ordinance was deemed unconstitutional because it infringed on rights given under the First Amendment. However, this case helped define the difference between hate speech and hate crimes. This would open the doorways to allowing states to enact hate crime legislation. Even with hate crime legislation being enforced throughout the country, it has not proven to be a deterrent to Skinheads. Skinhead attacks have become part of the daily news for nearly two decades now. In Salt Lake City, Utah, Robby Wayne Baalman was sentenced last week to 57 months in a federal prison for attacking a black bicyclist as part of his initiation into the American Front, a national Skinhead group (Manson, 2006). As data has shown, Nazi Skinheads commit far less of the hate crimes in this country than the average American would think. This does not mean that they are group to be ignored and must be dealt with to keep their numbers in check. Efforts have been taken in the past to deal with the problem and will continue. One way has been through self-policing. Skinheads Against Racial Prejudice (SHARP) is still an active group that looks to counteract the Nazi Skinhead movement. Their main means of combating the problem has been done by using force. The attacks still continue to this day and each side takes turns attacking the other. The problem that arose from this approach was that SHARPs took it a step further. Basically, it became a matter of you are either with us or against us. It became very common for SHARPs to attack non-racist Skinheads. A true Skinhead does not subscribe to racist politics, but the distinction was overlooked in order to police the scene. If anything these attacks brought Nazi Skinheads closer together in order to not be outnumbered. Nazi Skinheads were becoming a problem several years ago in Boston, MA. That was until another group decided to take matters into their own hands to stop the racist menace. Friends Standing United (FSU), as they refer to themselves, went on violent spree and rid the city of Nazi Skinheads. The true name of this group is actually Fuck Shit Up, but members refuse to admit to that. It would appear that FSU had taken care of the problem and things would be the way they should be. Violence in Boston would only get worse. As FSU's numbers grew so did violent attacks on innocent bystanders at local music venues and even on the streets. The group has actually received quite a bit of attention over the last year with the release of two DVD's entitled Boston Beatdown. Boston Beatdown is supposedly a look at Boston's hardcore music scene. Although it does feature several bands featured live and a soundtrack by groups within the genre, it is really nothing more than home movies of fights. The producers swear that they just happen to capture the fights randomly and nothing is staged, but watching the DVD's tells a different story. So, FSU took care of the Nazi Skinhead problem in Boston and created something even worse. Although their attacks are not hate crimes they are a greater problem. They give everyone a chance, regardless of race, ethnicity or religion a chance to become another victim in their brutal assaults. Perhaps government intervention is the key to squashing the problem. Perhaps undercover officers could pose as Skinheads, gain their trust and bring them down from the inside. Well, the government has no intention of stopping the Nazi Skinhead menace, but merely chooses to keep an eye on it. “In the 1993 case of the Fourth Reich skins in L.A., who were infiltrated and in part financed by government agents, the feds testified that they moved to make arrests only when they felt the skins were getting out of control” (Novick, p.56). Others feel a more grassroots approach is necessary to deal with the problem. There appears to have been some degrees of success using this approach, but no true proof that it does indeed work. Jon Moros, an English teacher from San Clemente, CA, took matters into his own hands when racial tensions were at an all-time high. In 1994 he began a class to combat hate in his community. In his first class Moros was faced with the challenge of trying to educate a young man named Steve Raines. “Raines took the very first course back in 1994, often wearing his bomber jacket emblazoned with confederate flags and Nazi iron crosses (Shaffer p.57). Raines himself admitted to taking the class to let the world know why he was a racist and not to get any form of help. Upon completion of the course everyone went their separate ways. “When Raines exited the class expressing the same racial and anti-gay attitudes with which he had entered, Moros felt he had failed his biggest challenge – reaching the kids who most need to change” (Shaffer p.57). A year later Raines returned to his former teacher with his Indian girlfriend by his side proclaiming he was no longer prejudice. Moros actually took this as a sign that he had indeed made a difference. Undoubtedly, the campus has become more peaceful since the class was introduced, but was it all from the class. Not to be too cynical, but the change in Raines may have had nothing to do with the class. Love can be a might powerful weapon in itself. As for the sense of well-being around campus it cannot be ascertained on whether or not it had anything to do with the class. However, if it is not causing anyone harm then it is worth trying. As sad as it is to say, racism and hate are a necessary in order for the economy to work in this country. It does not make it okay, but it will not cease to exist. Nazi Skinheads are not the problem. They are just another set of pawns to help keep people divided. Whites will continue to blame others for their economic misfortunes. At the end of a hard day at work, a white man can cash his paycheck, sit back and have a beer amongst his peers and complain about how the Mexicans are taking jobs away or working for less money. He can grumble about how Affirmative Action is holding him down and giving Black workers better paying jobs. His sentences will start with the classic “I'm not a racist, but…” Even though his misfortunes were brought about by his employer and in a broader sense from a Capitalist economy, it easier to blame the guy he has never met. This white guy knows he is not a racist though. "Hey, don't get me wrong. "I have colored friends too you know." He's believes he is the victim. "Pretty soon we're going to be the minority." He's not some Nazi Skinhead going around attacking people because of the color of their skin. "How can people do such horrible things?" Perhaps things will change. Only time will tell. Surely we cannot hate one another forever. There must be something to look forward to in the future. Fascism is a deformity of capitalism. It heightens the imperialist tendency towards domination which is inherent in capitalism, and it safeguards the principle of private property. At the same time, fascism immeasurably strengthens the institutional racism already bred by capitalism, whether it be against Jews (as in Hitler's case) or against African peoples (as in the ideology of Portugal's Salazar and the leaders of South Africa). Fascism reverses the political gains of the bourgeois democratic system such as free elections, equality before the law, parliaments, etc., and it also extols authoritarianism and the reactionary union of the church with the state (Rodney, p.216). WORKS CITED Craig, Kellina M. 2002. Examining Hate-Motivated Aggression: a review of the social psychological literature on hate crimes as a distinct form of aggression. Aggression and Violent Behavior 7:1, January-February, 85-101. Dunbar, Edward (2003). Symbolic, relational, and ideological signifiers of bias-motivated offenders: toward a strategy of assessment. American Journal of Orthopsychiatry, Volume 73, Issue 2, 203–211. Gerstenfeld, Phyllis B. (2004). Hate Crimes: Causes, Controls and Controversies. Thousand Oaks, CA: Sage Publications. Herbert, Doug (1999, June). FAQ for alt.Skinheads: Questions and Answers about the Skinhead Subculture. Retrieved March 18, 2006, from http://www.tradskin.org/faq.html. Manson, Pamela (2006, March 8). Sandy man pleads guilty to hate crime in attack on black cyclist. [Electronic version] The Salt Lake Tribune, Retrieved March 18, 2006, from http://www.sltrib.com/search/ci_3579954 Moore, Jack B. (1993). Skinheads Shaved for Battle : A Cultural History of American Skinheads. Bowling Green, OH : Bowling Green State University Popular Press. Novick, Michael (1995). White Lies, White Power: The Fight Against White Supremacy and Reactionary Violence. Monroe ME: Common Courage Press. Rodney, Walter (1981). How Europe Undeveloped Africa. Washington, D.C. : Howard University Press. Shaffer, Marc (1999, September 3). Wiping Out Hate in U.S.: Change must begin community by community. The San Francisco Chronicle (Reprinted from Hate Behavior and Hate Crimes: What Motivates People to Hate. How Can We Prevent Hate Crimes in our School and Communities? A Town Meeting, Simon Wiesenthal Center, Los Angeles (1999, December 7) & California State Capital (2000, February 1), 56-57). Southern Poverty Law Center Intelligence Project: Active U.S. Hate Groups in 2004 (2004). Retrieved March 18, 2006, from http://www.splcenter.org/intel/map/hate.jsp) Van Biema, David (1993, August). When White Makes Right, Time, 9: 40-42. [/FONT][/QUOTE]

top [Vers. 0.12][ 0.004 secs/8 queries][refresh][