AFRAM Blog Post #3

The underpinnings of race in the punk scene appears to be established by a new era of social acceptance, but brought forth a new wave of racial oppresion. Mimi Nguyen, author of "IT'S (NOT) A WHITE WORLD: LOOKING FOR RACE IN PUNK", describes the issues accompanied by following a color-blind approach to race. She explains that, "Color-blindness suggests that race is only skin-deep; that beneath race is something more fundamental... But worse, this insistence that 'we're all the same' leads to all kinds of equivalences that just makes no sense at all." I found this to be intriguing as this response to conforming to personal agenda about race may seem fair, but neglects the individualism that matters. This method of assuming everyone to be the same, regardless of color, is a tactic that only serves to discount the voice of demographic groups. Nguyen concludes her conversation by owning your background where, "You (and I mean everybody now) can be accountable to your social location. Interrogate and historicize your place in society, punk, whatever... Engage it, even use it strategically. And work with me, not for me." This idea of examining the power of social location makes it easier for communities to collaborate rather than to avoid each other in the soci-political environment.
Furthermore, Nguyen's idea of owning consciousness to one's individualism is highlighted in Ryan Moore's discourse, "Young, Gifted, and Slack". Moore states, "A unique local music scene that mixed punk and heavy metal had been developing in Seattle years before anyone had heard of Nirvana." At this time, cities other than Seattle did not co-exist and sustained common notions of rivalry. Moore also explains that in Seattle, "'There were a lot of punk rockers and metal heads and hippies... Everyone lived together, everyone jammed together, everyone hung out and went to the same shows and had the same record collections.'" This context of how Seattle developed a community where polar opposites of music genres came together illustrates Nguyen's ownership to individualism. Rather than oppressing one another, sub-cultures in Seattle mingled and developed a new spectrum in musical style. This shows how exercising individualism with one's racial agenda can empower communities.

Lithium / Nirvana - https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=Z05qiPnLpMM
Black Hole Sun / Soundgarden - https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=3mbBbFH9fAg

Both of these songs represent the fusion of punk rock and metal into the musical style Grunge. These songs have introduced the use of the electric guitar with lyrics that address freedom and self-absorbed vibes. I connected Lithium and Black Hole Sun with the readings as they convey how cultures collided and became fueled by creativity and ownership.