Punks vs Fascists: a cultural history of Rock Against Racism

Whilst today it may be hard to imagine a Fascist Britain, to the people of 1976, the threat was a very real one. As Britain further retreated into decline, the National Front offered the easy solutions for the nations’ recovery, and as such it seemed that Britain was on the brink of  embracing fascist politics.  

By 1976, the NF was at the height of its popularity: having appropriated the populist racism of Enoch Powell, the Ugandan Asians crisis of 1972 provided the party with a significant boost in membership equalling around 17,500 by 1973. In 1974, the party would field fifty candidates in the General Election but following the very similar Malawian Asians crisis of 1976, the party announced its intention to field 300 candidates at the next General Election. Despite appearing as a fringe party then, the prospect of the NF becoming well-established appeared increasingly more alarming.  

More frightening though were developments beyond the political sphere. That summer, major rockstar Eric Clapton erupted into a racist tirade on stage in Birmingham, openly proclaiming that ‘Enoch was right’ and repeatingthe Front’s slogan ‘Keep Britain White’. 1976 was also the year that David Bowie took on his fascist persona whilst the punk subculture, which was becoming more prominent, continued its appropriation of the swastika. Suffice to say, fascism had embedded itself within popular culture, from which a base of popular support emerged. 

Of course though, not everyone was onboard with the Front’s rise. Since the early 1970s, there had been frequent demonstrations by antifascists against the NF, notably the 1,500 protestors at Red Lion Square in 1974, which became infamous for the death of Warwick Student Kevin Gately after clashes with the Police. The effectiveness of such demonstrations however was clearly limited, painting antifascism as violent without detracting from the NF’s rise.  

In this respect, the formation of Rock Against Racism was revolutionary. The premise was simple: if the likes of Eric Clapton could use music to spread a message of hate, then music could also be used to counter that. In contrast to the sectarian left-wing antifascism marred by a violent reputation, the concept of staging a series of music festivals was conceptually the perfect antidote to the NF, because it could counter racist populism with a new form of populism.  

Between 1976 and 1982, artists such as the Clash, The Specials, The Buzzcocks, and Elvis Costello all featured in RAR concerts. Alongside these, reggae bands such as Steel Pulse performed, communicating a multi-ethnic vision of Britain on stage in opposition to white supremacy.  

At the height of RAR’s popularity in the summer of 1978, two concerts staged at Brockwell Park and Victoria Park enjoyed attendances of 80,000 and 100,000 respectively. Compared to Red Lion Square’s 1,500, it is clear to see the populist appeal of RAR. It may seem like a cliché, but the simplicity of music bringing people together was realised through the movement.   

Look no further than the fate of the NF. The party fielded 303 candidates at the 1979 General Election. In reality, they could only marginally increase voter share from 0.4% to 0.6% and embarrassingly lost £45,450 in deposits.  

As a base for popular antifascism then, RAR has indelible significance. Rather than retreating into a narrow antifascist outlook, in response to the very real threat of the NF, as it became apparent in the cultural sphere, RAR embraced a populism suited to fighting fascism’s rise in Britain. As such, its history can not only teach us about cultural resistance but more so act as a blueprint for further resistance in the future.

Bibliography

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Goodyear, Ian, Crisis Music : The Cultural Politics of Rock Against Racism (Manchester University Press, 2009). 

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