Subject: skinhead
Culture: neo-Nazi
Setting: America, Britain
Context
* Dobratz & Shanks-Meile 1997 p63
"When one hears the name skinheads, one may think of young men with shaved heads and swastikas engaging in violence. ... [N]ot all skinheads are racist and ... in fact those who are not are actually more numerous. Skinhead organizations that are vehemently opposed to racism are called 'Skinheads Against Racial Prejudice' (SHARP). The skinheads began in Great Britain in the 1960s and developed in the United States during the 1980s." [references omitted]
* Moore 1993 p4
"The skinheads evolved in America during the 1980s from first being viewed as another counter-cultural component somehow connected to the punk music scene, to being recognized as a separate group outliving the reformulation or virtual death of that scene and developing a specifically political agenda drawing skinheads closer to right wing hate movements in the United States, England, and Europe. This transformation was accompanied by a growth throughout the decade in the number of skinheads but far more markedly in skinhead commission of hate crimes -- bias crimes motivated by a spirit or ideology of hostility against victims because of their race, national origin, religion, or sexual orientation. By the end of the 1980s they achieved a reputation as the most violent extremist group in the country."
Costume
* Dobratz & Shanks-Meile 1997 p63
"...[S]kinhead' refers to a traditional British working-class delinquent subculture that is predominantly drawn from the semiskilled and unskilled manual working class. In the late 1960s, a skinhead style developed that celebrated traditional working-class values and was concerned about the economic and social issues facing the working-class community (e.g., dead-end jobs, lack of housing, poor education). Big boots, a certain style of jeans, and short cropped haircuts were often means of identification of a skinhead. ... [T]he hair style may have been a reaction to that of the longhaired, more middle-class hippies. ... '[S]hort hair was a rejection of elitist acid rock, Carnaby Street fashion, and exotic drugs such as marijuana, hashish and LSD.'" [references omitted]
* Dobratz & Shanks-Meile 1997 p64
"Although in Great Britain skinheads were tied closely to working-class culture, that linkage is not as strong in the United States; there are numerous middle-class skinheads. The shaved head image does not always characterize skinheads. ADL's worldwide survey of skinheads suggested that some skinheads are intentionally letting their hair grow long and changing their clothes styles, making it more difficult for them to be observed by law enforcement. In Hamm's survey of 36 people, only 32 percent of those he labeled 'terrorists' shaved their heads, whereas more than half of the nonterrorists did." [references omitted]
