Since the announcement of Trump’s candidacy and his eventual ascension to the presidency we have seen a rise in white supremacist/fascist organizing and a level of hate crimes across the nation reminiscent of the 80s and 90s. Still, like a virus, fascism adapts to different conditions and takes on a different face in each new iteration: During the wave of white supremacy in the 80s and 90s, Nazis were much more easily identifiable. Born out of the punk rock scene, they primarily hijacked the style of traditional non-racist (and in many cases, anti-racist) skinhead culture, adopted a militant look, and took to the streets to commit acts of violence against those who they deemed as lesser-than. This then-new breed of violent white-supremacists were simply called “skinheads” in mainstream media, but to traditional anti-racist skinheads and to anti-racist activists they were and continue to be called “boneheads”.
Image above: Portland Area white supremacist and Mortgage Banker, Andrew “Murphy” Harkins at the “Unite The Right” evening rally in which white supremacists tried to surround a statue of Thomas Jefferson. Charlottesville, VA, August, 11th, 2017.
