PUNK AND POLITICS

The Impact of Politics on the Punk Movement

           Politics influences riots, protests, anarchy, fashion, lyrics, music style, performance, and the artists themselves, which are all components of the punk movement. The punk movement revolves strongly around personal expression and personal ideals, starting with a disagreement between the people and society which builds up from there. Politics and punk work hand in hand, as punk music is a form of activism. Punk is the voice of the people. Punk is a way for people to connect. Punk is a form of self-expression. Music is influenced by the outside world and personal experiences; punk is influenced strongly by politics. Through lyrics, the performer and performance, and the crowd, politics plays a large role in punk because it is a way for people who disagree with political activities to come together and express themselves.

           Punk artists work around the ideology of punk to create their music to share with their listeners. The ideology of punk is composed of many parts and is similar to a religion. There are many ideological elements when it comes to punk music and the movement itself (O’Connor 227). A band’s ideological elements are composed of “the philosophy of straight edge, best understood as a matter of personal integrity rather than giving in to group pressures around drinking, sex and drugs” (O’Connor 227). The ideology of punk is something followed by many artists. Alan O’Connor in his article “Local Scenes and Dangerous Crossroads: Punk and Theories of Cultural Hybridity” states that geography, philosophy, personal integrity, individual honesty, spirituality, community, commitment, and the exploration of politics and the rejection of everything mainstream are all elements of the punk ideology (227). This influences the actions of the band and their performance in very unique and individualistic ways. 

           Lyrics are a way for artists to share thoughts with the world and a way for listeners to connect with them based on their own personal opinions. Every word has an underlying meaning that alludes to something that is happening in the political world. Every word has a purpose. Every word in its own way is a form of activism. The Pussy Riots are a key component to the feminist punk movement, following in the footsteps of Riot Grrl, “finding inspiration in its impudence, politically charged lyrics, and outspoken feminism” (Creasap 4). This suggests that their “politically charged lyrics” could have been leaning towards the concept of feminism and the lack of women's rights. The Pussy Riots were strongly rooted in feminism and acted out in hopes of expressing their opinions about feminism through their music. Through lyrics, they are able to express the inequality they are experiencing whether it is first hand or a general disagreement with the people of a higher power (Creasap 4). Many bands want to show the realities of the world to the people through their work and actions. “The bands were using the songs to make sense of the dangerous world we all found ourselves in” (Dunn 194). Our world is very complex and these artists attempt to put forth an understanding about our world to their listeners in hopes of alleviating some confusion. By using songs to create a safe space where the lyrics are understood, musicians are able to sympathize with the listeners. Both the musicians and the listeners take lyrics to heart and are able to use these words to communicate their frustrations between one another. “Last February, police escorted Russian punk band Pussy Riot out of a Moscow church after they performed a ‘punk prayer’ that included the line ‘Mother of God, Virgin Mary, drive Putin away’” (Creasap 4). These lines were politically influenced and used as a form of hate speech which ended poorly for the Pussy Riots. Their self-expression turned into a political attack which is common of punk bands. When the artist believes there to be some form of injustice, it is easy for them to write lyrics to express their feelings which we, the listeners, are able to relate to. Lyrics, as well as any other element of the song, are very important when trying to understand the politics behind punk. When looking at the political message that lies beneath the surface of the song, listeners understand and recognize the anger and angst of the artist and then make clear how this anger spreads far wider than the performer.

           Politics influences the punk movement through the attitude of the band and their performance. The exterior of the work, the performance of the show and the artists’ attitudes, is influenced by politics just as much as the interior, meaning the lyrics and music itself. As Kimberly Creasap writes in “Punk Politics”, “International outrage and activism through music was a key point to punk. Politics played a role in not only the music itself but the people who were listening as well. Through protests and performances, politics was everywhere. Punk and Politics worked side by side.’” (Creasap 4). Activism through punk is an important part of the punk movement. Every lyric, every action has a purpose. These artists want to show their fans how they can be themselves and be independent, showing that social norms do not need to be followed. Other than their music, their stage performance is a way for them to spread their messages. Their tone of voice, their style, their actions, and their performance impacts the punk scene. Many punk bands want to create international movements and protests because of their dissatisfaction with society, for example, “Pussy Riot did exactly what many punk bands have done - sparked protest” (Creasap 4). For punk, which is a form of self-expression, activism, and leadership, protests are a way for the people to be heard. The musicians’ actions on stage were their way of creating a discussion. The punk scene shares so many perspectives about the world through the people. For example, Kevin Dunn says in “Never Mind the Bollocks: The Punk Rock Politics of Global Communication” that, “The global punk rock scene provides a fruitful basis for exploring...messages that moves beyond the limitations of IR” (Dunn 194). Dunn is saying the punk scene is a way for people to spread “messages”; it is a way for people to share the way they were feeling, it is a safe haven in many ways. Although their actions may be different, their style is different, and the words and sounds are different to those in pop bands, their message is strong. The performance on the outside shows to the world how punk bands are feeling. Simply pressing play on that album allows the people to see for themselves what is really problematic in our world from the eyes of the musician and the voices of the people. 

           Punk and its relationship with politics not only influence the music and the performer but influence the crowd as well. The crowd, with anger towards politicians and political events look for answers, and punk music provides a sanctuary for these crowd members with the answers they seek. Anarchists, much like other punk listeners, turn to music for guidance. When the listeners and the performers come together they can create a community or a clique. The band then has a body of people who stand behind their ideas and agree with their messages. For example, Martin said in “The Blurred Boundaries of Anarchism and Punk in Vancouver, 1970-1983”: “I argue that anarchists turned to punk because they saw it as politically congruent with specific ideas of revolutionary struggle, political perspectives that were increasingly popular among certain North American leftists during this period” (12). Anarchists and punk look to combine together both political activism and popular culture. Both anarchy and punk complement each other and look to create social movements. Punk is rebellion and there was no doubt about it. Punk influences movements and protests, and people take action on a social level to fight against the political injustice they believed to be present (Martin 12). The community behind the music is just as important as anything else. People in large masses feel similar about the music and they believe there is more to it than just some random drug addict artist who makes music for fun and has no idea what they are writing about. These bands are able to have a strong influence on the people; as Dan Nailen says in “Punk Goes Pop,” their “Short, catchy songs. Striking visual imagery. An ability to create an almost cultish relationship among fans. These things work in both punk and pop worlds” (Nailen). The “cultish relationship among fans” is something that all punk artists wanted. They want to grow their following and have people standing behind them through and through (Nailen). The idea of politics affecting the bands, which affects the music, which then affects the people, goes in a cycle. Without the musical protesters, there would be no movement, without the listeners there would be no one to influence. The crowd is what makes punk, punk. These bands are the voices of the people, but politics are what make the band have a voice. The people are what makes this voice larger. 

           Punk and politics work hand in hand. From the lyrics, to the performance, to the bands, to the people, we see the surfacing of politics in the larger genre of punk. Through these elements of self-expression, revolution can occur. There is reform and understanding. And through protests and movements, there is the possibility for political change. Punk itself is a form of activism. Just like the cool dark depths of the ocean to the heated clear blue surface, punk has its layers. Politics influenced punk strongly and we can see it through the many who have been impacted by punk itself. From the musician to the listener, we see the influences that politics had and still has on the punk movement.