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Punk and Community

2025-01-25

Around November 2024, for reasons unknown (ha), I got really into exploring punk as a genre.

I've been trying to do more intentional exploration of genres in general lately, and the election results definitely had me in the right mood for punk. The politically charged lyrics and righteous anger have been a great comfort during the political turmoil that we've witnessed since.

While I have enjoyed listening to a large variety of punk music, spanning multiple decades, I really prioritized listening to bands that were queer, Black, or women-led. I found that these songs resonated with me more than the "mainstream" (if you can call it that...?) cishet white punk bands. While there are plenty whose music I enjoyed, the lyrics often left me wanting for more.

Around this time, I went to a local bookstore and picked up a copy of Black Punk Now, a zine-like book centering the voices of black punks. It got me thinking a lot about community and what punk really means.

It's easy to reduce punk down to just a music genre, a fashion style, an ~aesthetic~, but punk has always been about community, counter-culture, and politics.