When you think of a skinhead you probably picture a bald headed, tattooed punk with big boots and more likely than not sporting a plaid shirt and/or a Harrington/Bomber jacket. So far you’re more or less spot on, but many people also assume (wrongly) that all skinheads are racists. This post will dispel those myths once and for all; proper skinheads have always been anti-racist and anti-fascist.

Skinhead culture emerged in London England in the 1960’s when Jamaican immigrants imported killer music such as ska, reggae and rocksteady and introduced it to young working class Britons. This is most ironic as what started as a multiracial and inclusive music scene later became co-opted by white supremacist scum bags in the 70s, 80s and 90s.

As skinhead culture came about as a combination of British and Jamaican music scenes merging, calling yourself a skinhead automatically identified one as anti-racist. Until the late 1970s when primarily teens started to be recruited by white supremacist groups at punk shows, unfortunately forming their own neo-Nazi subgenre of punk music while stealing the skinhead look of shaved or buzzed heads, tattoos, and of course formed their own garbage bands. These were lonely, angry, largely working class and poorer white kids who were mad about immigration, the state of their country (both England and the US) and sharing the distrust of government that all punk music has, with added racism and bigotry that were being targeted and taken advantage of by hate groups that were booming in the 80s and 90s in particular.

This attempt by the far right to co-opt punk scenes including skinhead culture lead to songs like Nazi Punks Fuck Off by The Dead Kennedy’s and anti-racist groups like S.H.A.R.P – SkinHeads Against Racial Prejudice – being formed in direct opposition to the rise of white supremacy. Sharp is a movement that was formed in New York City in 1987 by Marcus Pacheco in an attempt to unite anti-racist skinheads and punks. The movement is still around today and those who believe in their ideals can be most easily recognized usually wearing pins with the SHARP logo. Roddy Moreno, vocalist of Oi! band The Oppressed designed the logo for Marcus, using a a Trojan helmet, a nod to the Trojan Records music label of the 60s and 70s, usually with the acronym SHARP. Marcus wanted SHARP to exist as an option for non racists and to alter the new trajectory of young punks being turned into racists.

While some people might associate white supremacist tattoos with skinheads, the majority of skinhead tattoos are related to growing up in the UK, lots of “born in *blank*” tattoos, roses, three arrows, crosses, SHARP logos, boots and laces etc. Real skinheads are antiracist, and the only good racist is a dead one!

To read more about the origins of skinheads and antiracism in the original scene check these links out. https://diyconspiracy.net/sharp-skinheads-history/ https://www.singforscience.org/blog/a-brief-and-partial-history-of-skinheads-in-punk-dropkick-murphys-ken-casey https://scholarworks.calstate.edu/downloads/qj72pf24j