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Putting into context the rise of the
National Front, its increasing generation of publicity and the
breakdown of the then current labour government, its still hard to hard
to believe that a statement by Eric Clapton at a gig in August 1976
started Rock Against Racism and aided the downfall of the National Front.
In September the photographer Red Saunders reacted and had published in
the key rock weeklies Sounds, NME and Melody Maker the following letter:
"When we read about
Eric Clapton's Birmingham concert when he urged support for Enoch Powell,
we nearly puked. Come on Eric... Own up. Half your music is black. You're
rock music's biggest colonist... We want to organise a rank and file
movement against the racist poison music... P. S. Who shot the Sheriff
Eric? It sure as hell wasn't you!" |
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In one way punk rock
and Rock Against Racism were strange bedfellows and in another they were
made for each other. Strange because of punks ambivalent political stance
and nazi symbolism. Made for each other because it was the voice of youth
- new, visual bright, open to ideas aggressive and sharp. It also felt
something in common with reggae and the blacks in general as being
underdogs. In return RAR offered an audience and paying gigs for bands
struggling to find places to play to a grassroots audience. RAR soon
adopted some of punks tools be it graphics or the use of fanzines. Their
very own was Temporary Hoarding . Note the tone from of the editorial from
the first issue:
'We want Rebel
music, street music. Music that breaks down people's fear of one another.
Crisis music. Now music. Music that knows who the real enemy is. Rock
against Racism. Love Music Hate Racism.' |
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Ironically the
National Front attempted the same in its magazine 'Bulldog' trying to make
songs like
White Riot
by the clash and
Feel Like A wWog
as calls to action by punk bands espousing racist lyrics and calls to
action. We deal with this elsewhere.
RAR soon began to grow in popularity and
of course power. The Socialist Worker Party had been engaged in ever more
bloody confrontations with the National Front with negative publicity
painting them as
being just as bad. And so they set up another organisation called the Anti Nazi
League which broadened their support and underplayed the SWP part of it.
After all you may disagree with the SWP but you are hardly likely to
disagree with being anti Nazi are you?
It is I think fairly
safe to assert that RAR/RAR in conjunction with punk rock and reggae acts
helped defeat the threat of the National Front. At grass roots level
bands like Gen X and the Cimarons shared stages and bands like the Art
Attacks, Sham 69, UK Subs, Joy Division played RAR/ANL gigs. |
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Publicity wise the largest RAR/ANL events
were the huge Carnivals. The first took place on 30 April 1978. The
Carnival began with a march to Victoria Park, where the Clash, Tom
Robinson, Steel Pulse, X-Ray Spex and others played to an audience of at
least 80,000 people. The event was well covered in the musical
papers but ignored by the main media. Other carnivals followed in Cardiff,
Manchester, Edinburgh and Southampton. The second Anti-Nazi League
Carnival took place in Brockwell Park, on 24 September 1978, with Sham 69
the headline band. This time with 100,000 people attending.
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Whether all the people
attending gigs and carnivals were seriously anti nazi or were just wanted to view the
bands is not the point. The point is the perception of a huge amount of
people under one cause all helped to undermine the NF's message and rive
to power.
With the potential
threat of the National Front diminished the need for RAR and its
carnivals and activities receded and the last carnival was held
in 1981. |
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Rock against Racism, smash it
Rock against Fascism, smash it
Rock against Nazism, me say smash it
I've come to the conclusion that
We're gonna hunt yeh yeh yeh
The National Front - Yes we are,
We're sonna kunt, yeh yeh yeh
The National Front
Cause they believe in apartheid
For that we gonna whop their hides
For all my people they cheated and lied
I won't rest till I'm satisfied
The National Front,
Said we gonna hunt the National Front
Jah Pickney (Rock Against
Racism) Steel Pulse |
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