- The history of punk feminism often begins and ends in the 1990s with riot grrrl, but that, as Nguyen notes, is a story that assumes that punk simply needed a temporary fix by feminism, as if it were only created by boys until Kathleen Hanna picked up a mic. This story writes out the earlier struggles of Albertine, of Poly Styrene of X-Ray Spex, of Siouxsie Sioux of Siouxsie and the Banshees, and of Patti Smith across the Atlantic. Styrene shrieked, “Some people think little girls should be seen and not heard, but I think—Oh bondage, up yours!” Albertine cranked the treble on her guitar to find a sound that didn’t sound like the men she heard and argued with Mick Jones that the Clash should be more political. Through her clothing, Vivienne Westwood turned sexual images into semiotic weapons that challenged what women should look like. The old story leaves out the possibility, as Ellen Willis once wrote, that the anger in the music could be just as inspiring to young women as it was to men. And it implies that riot grrrl’s battle was won.
I really think you're onto something here. Seeing what Feminism stands for and what Punk stands for I see some similarities. Punk being the DIY mentality and form what I understand feminism is not just for the equality but getting women to be their own hero and if they want something done then they can do it, and not letting others get in your way with a big fuck you to those that try and put you down. When Joan Jett was getting inducted into the Rock and Roll Hall of Fame earlier this year she talked about the sexism she went through. She encountered people telling her to lose the guitar because women shouldn't play it. Another thing she talked about was when they sent record labels their songs and got a handful of rejection letters. She and the band didn't quit! They ended up making the records themselves and selling them from their car after the shows. She went on to say this I think Joan is a great roll for females to follow with her take charge mentality. So yes, I do think feminism needs punk, and punk needs feminism.Whether you're female or male, that has nothing to do with whether or not you can play music. I mean, girls play cello and violin in symphony orchestras. Why can't a girl play guitar?
I would say yes, because the punk aesthetic has always involved a DIY attitude and political motivations, going back to The Clash and Siouxsie Sioux. Punk music has provided an outlet for people to associate with, generally these people feel some sort of disconnect from societal norms which leads to the stereotype of the rebellious teen who is too influenced by punk music. Be it left-wing, anti-corporatist, feminist, counter-cultural, etc etc punk bands represent all sorts of "underground" movements, and fringe socio-political movements (at least, originally fringe. Obviously feminism isn't a very fringe thing anymore). So, from that perspective I would say yes, punk needs feminism and feminism needs punk because they are born of the same idea - that inspiration and social change (even on a local level) can be encompassed by music, and that music provides an area where disenfranchised people can be represented. Hey, mk, I'm not seeing a hubwheel on this submission, are you? Thanks to whoever tagged this "grrrlski", however, the more used tag is #grrlski.
You're implying that feminists are literally as destructive as Nazis? We're not on Reddit anymore, bro. There's no gender wars here, and no need for hyperbole and radicalism. Feminism is a legit and mainstream movement that has generally been a good thing for humanity, even if it has it's blind spots and flaws that we can criticize like any other movement. It is also incredibly diverse and always changing, so that different criticisms and generalizations may not necessarily apply to different kinds of feminisms.
I kind of anticipated you going down that road and I can see why. I think there's a line between groups that have members that are stepping over boundaries (potentially extremist elements of feminism) and groups that are almost solely comprised of individuals that are explicitly hateful and violent towards other people and cultures. It is one thing to be attempting to empower or gain rights/in the case of the punk scene a safe place within the punk culture, and another thing to preach violence and unquestioned authority over other groups of people.
I'm still going to punk shows where the male to female ratio is 10;1 and all girls there are talked about as girlfriends or women to hit on. It's definitley a progressive environment but theres a lot of room left for improvement and t it's not quite a good safe space. Girl fronted bands get comments on how attractive they are but not the quality of music. Not everyone at the shows act this way but people still do and I don't think you can say feminism is played out if these problems are still occurring.