Animal rights are closely associated with twoideologies of thepunk subculture:anarcho-punk andstraight edge. This association dates back to the 1980s and has been expressed in areas that include song lyrics,benefit concerts for animal rights organisations, andmilitant actions of activists influenced by punk music. Among the latter,Rod Coronado,Peter Daniel Young and members ofSHAC are notable. This issue spread into variouspunk rock andhardcore subgenres, e.g.crust punk,metalcore andgrindcore, eventually becoming a distinctive feature of punk culture.
The inculcation of some concepts and practices related to animal rights in thecollective consciousness has been substantially pioneered and influenced by the punk movement. This association continues on into the 21st century, as evinced by the prominence of international vegan punk events such asIeperfest in Belgium,Fluff Fest in Czech Republic, andVerdurada in Brazil.
In order to understand the radical animal rights and environmental movements, it helps to know a bit about punk rock.
The relationship between punk and animal rights is highlighted in the imagery and lyrics of these bands, the content ofzines, benefit concerts and albums for animal activist causes, and the convergence between punk andveganism incafés, social centres,Food Not Bombs chapters, organisations such as theAnimal Defense League andABC No Rio (United States), andhunt saboteur groups (United Kingdom).[2][3] Veganism has become thesocial norm in some communities of the anarcho-punk (current withinpunk rock that promotesanarchism)[4] and straight edge (hardcore punk subculture based on abstinence from alcohol, tobacco and other recreational drugs)[5][6] subcultures. For their part, the devotees of theHare Krishna tradition, present in thekrishnacore subgenre, are required to bevegetarians.[7]
A 2014 study indicates that vegan punks are more likely to remain politically active through their diets and lifestyles than those who do not belong to this subculture.[8] The majority of those incarcerated for illicit animal activism in the late 1990s and early 2000s were involved in hardcore punk music.[9] In the anglosphere, although women are probably the greatest part of animal rights and environmental advocacy, young white men constitute the majority of botheco-animal rights criminality and the "hypermasculine" vegan straight edge milieu, coinciding with the propaganda success of organisations such as theEarth Liberation Front.[10] Despite these correlations, the sociologists Will Boisseau and Jim Donaghey state that not all punks are vegans or are even interested in animal rights,[11] while sociologist Ross Haenfler writes that tolerant straight edgers have always outnumbered their militant counterparts, who, nevertheless, "overshadowed much of the scene" for their violent actions.[12]
Vegetarianism, widely stigmatized as an Oriental and feminine practice, helps to differentiate punks from the mainstream, neatly corresponds to punkegalitarian values, and offers a direct challenge to thegender relations perceived inmeat.
Researcher Kirsty Lohman points out that punk's concern foranimal welfare is placed in broader politics ofenvironmental awareness andanti-consumerism, suggesting a form of continuity with previouscountercultures such as thehippies andavant-gardes.[14] One of the main characteristics of punk is itsanti-authoritarian nature that includes a belief inliberation, concept which quickly extended into compassion for animals.[3] In line with this, author Craig O'Hara said that "politically minded punks have viewed our treatment of animals as another of the many existing forms ofoppression."[15] Furthermore, due to the substantial affiliation between meat eating andmasculinity, many punks consider their vegetarian lifestyles as, at least partly, afeminist practice.[13][note 1] For these reasons, Boisseau and Donaghey suggest that the relationship between punk culture and animal rights and veganism is best understood within the framework of anarchism andintersectionality.[16]
Unlike anarcho-punk, straight edge is not inherently political.[17] For many straight edgers, as stated by Haenfler, "the personal is the political", choosing to live out their lifestyle (e.g. by adopting vegetarian diets) rather than engaging in traditional political protest.[18] There have also beenleft-wing,conservative,radical, anarchist and religious interpretations of straight edge.[19] Some straight edge people became Hare Krishnas because the latter provides a transcendental and philosophical framework wherein lay the commitments of non-drug use, vegetarianism and avoidance of illicit sex.[20] Francis Stewart of theUniversity of Stirling explained that there is still an anarchist influence on hardcore punk and straight edge, even if it were subtle, especially in regards to veganism andanimal liberation and in the position of these within larger patterns of oppression. In 2017, she observed that straight edge has had an increasing hybridisation with anarchism.[21]
Some radical political circles and authors have criticised some straight edge branches, in particular its 1990s American form, for their "self-righteous militancy", "reductionist focus on animal rights and environmental issues," and a religious leaning "that, in its worst forms, resembled reactionaryChristian doctrines", according to anarchist writerGabriel Kuhn.[22][23] By the same token, other authors, such as music theorist Jonathan Pieslak, as well as straight edge activists argue that left-wing socio-political andpolitically correct agendas are detrimental to the movement because the scope of supporters is actually narrowed in broadening its causes since not everyone agrees on all of them. Instead, they propose the initialbiocentrism which allowed highly divergent perspectives so long as the animals and earth were first.[24]
Despite their differences, sociologist Erik Hannerz highlights that anarcho-punk and straight edge not only coincide with animal rights, but both also emphasise ado-it-yourself (DIY) ethic and downplay a conspicuous style in favour of calling toaction, linking their lifestyles topolitical action.[25] Elsewhere, Boisseau and Donaghey write that many people exposed to animal rights and veganism continue their activism after ending their involvement in punk scenes, indicating the politicising role of these subcultures.[26]
Politicisation through punk typically involves an awareness of animal liberation through song lyrics and albums that include information and images ofanimal cruelty.[26] Zines also played a fundamental part by discussing animal rights,factory farming, and the health and environmental effects of diets, often drawing on academic authors.[13] For many listeners, punk rock scenes provided their first encounter with the horrors ofslaughterhouses orlaboratories, as noted by thecomparative religion scholarSarah M. Pike and vocalistMarkus Meißner, especially "before the Internet made documentaries available to everyone."[27][28] Regarding vegan straight edge activists, Pieslak writes that the "movement had an intense impact on listeners, with the music playing a transformative role".[29] Pike said that it generated an "internal revolution" in them through "the intensity of hardcore music and [its illustrative] lyrics"; the music working on them together with documentaries that reported the harshness ofseal hunting orfur farms; or simply the aural experiences "affirmed at a visceral level" the activists' desire for animal liberation.[30]
The reception of punk's activism has varied through the broader animal rights movement, which reflects the "much more diverse" ideological and tactical differences existent within both movements "than they might at first appear."[31] Sociologist and animal rights advocate Donna Maurer positively exemplified vegan straight edge as a movement that includes ethical veganism as part of theircollective identity, therefore furthering the cause, but warned that teens who adopt it only to be part of the group can contribute to thefree-rider problem.[32] Strategies such asarson andproperty damage have often been attributed to the youthfulness and punk subcultural affiliation ofA.L.F. activists and other related organisations. The more mainstream advocates tend to condemn these tactics and sometimes their relationship with punk. Others have supported them because, in their opinion, they seem to produce more quick changes.[33] Another controversy has been theanti-abortion stance of some of the most religiously committed activists which, in the case of hardcore punk, were influenced by thesanctity of life belief ofKrishna Consciousness andhardline.[34]
The association of anarcho-punk and animal rights and environmentalism dates from the 1980s in the United Kingdom.[35][36] This relationship (and subgenre) arises in the context of political upheaval, with aconservative government thatwaged war against Argentina (1982) and would eventuallydeploy nuclear missiles in the country.[37] Anarcho-punk tried to restore punk rock's original objective of a subversive change in the world, countering the "disappointment, self-destruction, and commercial corruption" that permeated its key first-wave bands, and instead abiding by a devoteddo-it-yourself ethic and philosophicalanarchism.[38] Anarcho-punk bands, which at first were widelypacifists, called to live consciously and to engage in activism; while some likeDischarge andCrass emphasised theiranti-war positions, others focused on animal rights such asFlux of Pink Indians andConflict.[14][39]
Journalist Nora Kusche states that anarcho-punk was the first music genre that made animal rights activism one of its main characteristics.[40] Some punks, most remarkablyJoe Strummer ofthe Clash, were already vegetarians before the establishment of this movement.[41]
Researcher Aragorn Eloff notes that throughout the history of anarchism there had beensome strands that criticisedspeciesism and embracedplant-based diets, but none had done so with such militancy as anarcho-punk in the 1980s.[42] This was particularly true in itsBritish political tradition.[43]
In the anarchist DIY scenes, one of the most notable demonstrations of the punk lifestyle is a vegetarian or vegan diet.[26] The anarchist philosophy of punk, which favouredaction rather than a formal political organisation, was expressed in punks mobilising as hunt saboteurs (whose size was "swelled" by them), raising funds for activist groups and circulatingBritish Union for the Abolition of Vivisection's propaganda.[44][45] Images ofanimal testing were commonly exhibited in album covers, stickers, patches and buttons.[40] An already well-established animal rights counterculture inspired some of these strategies, including leafleting at gigs.[46] Kusche highlights thathunting was traditionally linked to theBritish aristocracy who then were disrupted by the "scruffy, antisocial" punks.[40]
During this period there was also a proliferation of punk zines that discussed animal rights andecological practices of consumption.[14] The scholars Russ Bestley and Rebecca Binns argue that the early establishment of animal rights in anarcho-punk led to a form of "two-way dialogue" between bands and participants instead of a "top-down" ideological imposition, which was more of the case with other developments.[46]
Many traditional British anarchists differed in several ways from anarcho-punk, considering their interest in theAnimal Liberation Front (A.L.F.), the counterculture of the punk underground and other concerns as "at best secondary and at worst irrelevant." Likewise, punks found many of the intellectual debates around anarchist politics and, initially, the violence supported by revolutionary traditionalists equally alienating. Although the separation was not unbridgeable, the tensions remained unresolved.[47]
An antecedent of this association is the 1979 song "Time Out" by the band Crass, initiators of anarcho-punk, in which they compare the human and animal fleshes.[48][note 2] The band Flux of Pink Indians pioneered this trend with their 1981 EPNeu Smell.[52][53] During their career, Flux gave out thousands of leaflets on vivisection and other subjects at their gigs.[46] In the following years, numerous anarcho-punk bands composed songs promoting animal rights and sometimes made it the principal topic, encompassing vegetarianism, anti-vivisection andopposition to hunting.[48][36] Furthermore, they would often include information and images ofanimal cruelty in their records.[26] The most important advocates of vegetarianism and animal rights were the group Conflict, who aligned themselves with the Animal Liberation Front (A.L.F.) This band made a "call to arms" against different institutions, includingslaughterhouses, and projected video footage of these while they played.[54][44] The title of their 1983 song "Meat Means Murder" turned into a slogan which quickly propagated through the punk scene; articles on the topic appeared on fanzines, even on American (Flipside andMaximumrocknroll) and Australian ones.[27] Their follow-up singleTo a Nation of Animal Lovers (1983) featuredSteve Ignorant of Crass as co-vocalist and included illustrated vivisection essays in addition to addresses of scientists, food producers andfur farms.[55][44]
Early anarcho-punk bands such asAmebix,[48]Antisect,[48] Dirt,[56]Exit-Stance,[57]Liberty,[56]Lost Cherrees,[58]Poison Girls,[59]Rudimentary Peni,[60] andSubhumans[48] all wrote songs dealing with animal rights issues as well, as did non-political bands such asthe Business.[41] Other remarkable works dedicated to the cause were the compilation albums of bandsThe Animals Packet (1983), organised byChumbawamba,[48] andThis is the A.L.F. (1989), organised by Conflict and which was described in a retrospective review as "one of the most crucial anarcho-punk compilations of the '80s (and beyond)".[59] American political bands of the early 1980s such asMDC andCrucifix, both from California and influenced by Crass, also promoted vegetarianism.[61][62]
Sociologist Peter Webb ascribed the growth of vegan and vegetariancafés,organic food suppliers, and A.L.F. andHunt Saboteurs Association increasing recruitment in Bristol through the first half of the 1980s to its anarcho-punk scene.[63] Several members of political and anarcho-punk bands engaged in direct action activism, for example one member ofPolemic Attack from Surrey was imprisoned for raiding an animal laboratory and two members ofAnti-System from Bradford for destroying butcher shops and breaking into an abattoir, while the members ofWartoys (Manchester), Virus (Dorset), Polemic Attack,Disorder (Bristol), andIcons of Filth (Wales) all reported to have been hunt saboteurs, the last of whom also made songs against themeat industry and whose vocalist, Stig Sewell, staunchly supported the A.L.F.[64][50]
In the mid- to late 1980s, the stripped-down and coarse style of anarcho-punk mixed with different subgenres ofheavy metal and brought forthcrust punk[65] andgrindcore,[66][67] which shared its emphasis on political and animal rights issues. Early grindcore bands such asNapalm Death,Agathocles andCarcass made animal rights one of their primary lyrical themes.[67] Early crust punk bands includingNausea,[61]Electro Hippies[40] andExtreme Noise Terror[68] also advocated vegetarian lifestyles.
In Spain, the anarchistska punk bandSka-P, formed in 1994, have written several songs criticising animal abuse and endorsed animal rights organisations.[69][70]
In 2018, Gerfried Ambrosch of theUniversity of Graz called the Canadian anarcho-punk bandPropagandhi "the most renowned contemporary vegan punk band".[71]
Some authors credit the anarcho-punk scene originated by Crass as the introduction of diverse concepts and counter-cultural practices inpopular culture, including those related to animal rights.[36][63] Eloff stated that the sudden growth ofanimal liberation theory and practice within anarchism since the 1980s, which also developed into philosophies such asveganarchism, was most probably caused by the anarcho-punk subculture.[72] According to authorJohn King, the animal stance of anarcho-punk spread through all areas of punk, especially thetraveller,hardcore,straight edge, andfolk-punk scenes.[41] Despite this, writer and musicianAndy Martin of the influential bandthe Apostles was not as enthusiastic, stating in 2014 that "Dave Morris and Helen Steel, for example, have achieved more for the campaign againstMcDonald's than every punk band there has ever been. This is not to unduly berate punk bands, but they must be regarded in the correct perspective..."[73]
Several animal rights activists such asRod Coronado,[1]Craig Rosebraugh,[1]Isa Chandra Moskowitz,[74] and David J. Wolfson[75] were initially inspired by anarcho-punk bands.
Beyond the basic tenets ofstraight edge (complete abstention from alcohol, tobacco and any recreational drug), its participants can lead their lifestyles freely, but an investigation by Ross Haenfler of theUniversity of Mississippi revealed some underlying values across the movement:healthy living, improving one's and others' lives, commitment to straight edge, refraining fromcasual sex, and involvement inprogressive causes.[76][note 3] Among the last, two of the most adopted are animal rights and vegetarian lifestyles, which many see as a logical extension of living a positive, non-exploitative lifestyle and equate the harm and immorality of drugs with animal products.[78][19] Many straight edge activists credit their empathy towardsanimal suffering and their actions to stop it due to the permanent state of consciousness that theirsober lifestyle gives them.[79]
Straight edge, as most subcultures, is not inherently political but its participants seek to "remoralise"dominant culture through their individual acts of resistance.[80] However, it often serves as a bridge to further political involvement, especially insocial justice and progressive causes.[81] The scholarSimon J. Bronner observes the lack of political homogeneity within the ideology, noting that there have beenradical, religious, anarchist, andconservative straight edge bands, sometimes-tensely-coexisting in local scenes. For example,Earth Crisis,Vegan Reich andChokehold all advocate veganism and sobriety, but disagree on other issues.[19] Sociologist William Tsitsos pointed out that some of the most influential American straight edge bands that espoused animal rights focused only on personal morality, even when referring to corporations, while some of their European counterparts saw these lifestyles as part of a largerleft-wing challengeagainst capitalism. He argues that, to a large extent, this was the result of theneoliberal andwelfare politics that respectively dominated these territories.[82]
The most controversial offshoot that advocated animal rights washardline, abiocentric militant ideology that combines veganism,revolutionary politics and anAbrahamic view of thenatural order, thus abjuringhomosexuality andabortion. Hardline was largely marginalised and remained a fringe phenomenon.[71][83] Thesacredness of life belief introduced by hardline andKrishna Consciousness did not only embrace animals, but alsounborn children. This influenced theanti-abortion stance of some of the most religiously committed animal rights activists and created a rift with those whosupported it.[34]
In the mid- to late 1980s, Americanhardcore punk music and particularly its subculture straight edge began to get involved in animal rights and environmentalism.[84][85] Journalist Brian Peterson attributes diverse influences on this relationship beyond anarcho-punk: thepost-hardcore bandBeefeater, the 1985 albumMeat Is Murder by Britishpost-punk bandthe Smiths, the Hare Krishna tradition, and the vegetarian rapperKRS-One.[86] On the other hand, Pike notes two origins for the activists that would later emerge from the scene: the political one, which started with the arrival of the Animal Liberation Front from England, and the religious one, influenced by the Hare Krishna faith.[87] Pioneering this trend were the 1986 songs "Do Unto Others" byCro-Mags, a band with Hare Krishna members, and "Free At Last" byYouth of Today, straight edgers, both criticising slaughterhouses in a verse.[88][65]
After those first contacts, works such asDiet for a New America (1987) byJohn Robbins andAnimal Liberation (1975) byPeter Singer increasingly began to circulate between the members of the scene, influencing bands andzines.[89] By this time Youth of Today had become the most popular straight edge group, propagating theyouth crew subculture, and included the pro-vegetarian song "No More" and a recommendation of vegetarian literature in their 1988 albumWe're Not in This Alone.[90][note 4] Several straight edge bands followed this trend, includingInsted andGorilla Biscuits.[92][93] In the early 1990s, the straight edge offshootkrishnacore was developed, which among its principles includes vegetarianism, centred on the bandsShelter (formed by two ex members of Youth of Today) and108.[7][20][note 5] Haenfler estimates that at this time three out of four straight edgers inDenver, Colorado were vegetarians and that among them were many vegans.[94] However, it did not take long before the new vocal vegetarians received a backlash from punks who considered these issues private.[71]
Analogously, in the late 1980s, the hardcore punk subgenrepowerviolence was established in California, featuring politically militant lyrics that also address animal rights.[95] One of its most notable bands areDropdead, who took cues from anarcho-punk and a strong animal activist stance.[96]
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The American bandVegan Reich, formed in the anarcho-punk community, released theirself-titled EP in 1990 along with a manifesto that ushered inhardline, a biocentric, militant, vegan, anti-drugs, and sexually conservative ideology.[97][71][note 6] Vegan Reich frontman Sean Muttaqi stated he started the band to "spread a militant animal liberation message," but ended up disillusioned with hardliners as they were "all-consumed with minute details or inward shit" by the end of his band in 1993.[82][98] The hardline scene was small, had few associated acts (includingRaid and Statement), and its principles on sexuality and abortion marginalised them to a large extent, but its stances on animal rights were innovative and helped to push veganism, direct action and increase awareness on animal liberation in hardcore punk.[104][13][17] Vegan Reich also infused a more metal sound into straight edge.[105]
The debates arising from the new moral tendencies in hardcore prompted animal rights to become predominant in the 1990s. Animal groups such asPeople for the Ethical Treatment of Animals (PETA) began to set up stalls at shows, distributing free literature. These organisations paid for advertisement in zines, some of which devoted their entire content to discuss these causes.[106] Consequently, the association between straight edge and vegetarianism or veganism soon permeated the whole scene and gave rise to a predominantly militant branch centred on veganism:vegan straight edge.[106][94] One of its pioneering bands wasChokehold from Ontario, Canada, but the ideology was largely popularised and radicalised byEarth Crisis from Syracuse, New York, whose lyrics from their 1995 debut albumDestroy the Machines "read like passages fromEarth First!, Animal Liberation Front, andEarth Liberation Front direct-action essays."[107][108] Other notable American vegan straight edge bands during the 1990s wereBirthright (Indiana),Culture (Florida),Day of Suffering (North Carolina),Green Rage (New York),Morning Again (Florida), andWarcry (Indiana).[89] By and large, their style was a blend of hardcore punk andextreme metal known asmetalcore.[109] The vegan straight edge record label Catalyst Records was founded in Indiana in the early 1990s as well.[110]
Vegan straight edge soon influenced bands from many countries, including Sweden (Refused andAbhinanda), Portugal (New Winds), and Brazil (Point of No Return).[27] In Belgium, straight edge bands such asManLiftingBanner[111] also advocated vegetarian diets and theIeperfest vegan hardcorefestival was founded in 1993, which would also influence the creation of the Czech veganFluff Fest in 2000.[112] In Umeå, the city of Refused and Abhinanda, the number of 15-year-old vegetarians increased to 16% in 1996.[113] Since the mid-1990s, the hardcore scene of São Paulo, Brazil has been highly organised, politicised and involved in animal rights by a collective that incorporated straight edge, anarchism, and the Hare Krishna tradition.[114] One of its branches established theVerdurada drug and meat free festival in 1996, in which a vegan dinner is served at the end to the attendees.[115] A portion of the Israeli hardcore scene intertwined straight edge, animal rights and anarchism at this period as well.[116]
Inspired by these developments, some young people joined radical groups for animal rights and environmentalism such as the Animal Liberation Front (A.L.F.),Animal Defense League (A.D.L.),Sea Shepherd Conservation Society and Earth First![117] An increase in Animal Liberation Front activism in North America corresponds with the rise of vegan straight edge and hardline bands through the 1990s.[118] The majority of animal rights activists imprisoned in the late 1990s and early 2000s were involved in hardcore punk.[9] Despite the preponderance of this association, some people in the scene felt that militancy was taken to the extreme and they often responded reactionarily.[117] Direct action methods were especially debated for the aggression and sometimes criminality they meant.[103]
In the late 1990s, several vegan straight edge bands had split up and soon the ideology took a back seat in the American hardcore subculture, but its impact on the scene has lasted and become "almost inextricably linked" to it.[119]
JournalistWill Potter affirms that the hardcore subculture "was even more influential" for activists than its British predecessor, with both having "had a formative, lasting impact on" the radical animal rights and environmental movements.[1] Peterson states that the impact of animal rights on hardcore is felt not only in the scene, but also in thecollective consciousness and many activists who developed there.[120] Dylan Clark of theUniversity of Toronto wrote that straight edge's advocacy of veganism ultimately fed it into the entire punk spectrum.[13] Several animal rights activists such asPeter Daniel Young,[1] several members ofStop Huntingdon Animal Cruelty 7 (SHAC 7),[1][121] andWalter Bond[122] were initially inspired by straight edge bands.
In Germany, the punk zineOx-Fanzine was founded in 1989 and began publishingvegan cookbooks.[27] In later years, there has been an influx of punk-themed cookbooks published by large publishing houses, includingHow It All Vegan (1999) bySarah Kramer andTanya Barnard, andVegan with a Vengeance (2005) byIsa Chandra Moskowitz.[3] Several punks have set up vegetarian restaurants across the United States after noticing the lack of catering towards them.[3] Cosmetic and clothing companies also began to serve to their new punk-vegan niche market, including lines byManic Panic (company started by former members ofBlondie) andKat Von D.[3][123]
Since 2001,Vans Warped Tour has been affiliated with PETA, including food vendors that distribute animal rights information.[3][124] Other large punk festivals such asRebellion in 2011 have turned their backstage caterings entirely vegetarian.[41]
Theska-punk bandGoldfinger, formed in 1994, started as a "fun" project but since their fourth album,Open Your Eyes (2002), their frontman and producerJohn Feldmann became a member of PETA and put animal rights at the forefront of their music.[125][126]
In Spain and some Latin American countries, several punk bands have written songs againstbullfighting.[127][128]
The political priorities of anarcho-punk were very different from what had gone before. Clear political foci [of British anarchists] were provided by the anti-nuclear and anti-war movements, but the attentions of anarcho-punk extended to include a matrix of other issues - including militant vegetarianism and animal liberation; [...] In the early 1980s it was from within anarcho-punk that so many of the profile events and developments which bore the imprint of the anarchist movement drew momentum - including [...] the rise of a newly militant animal liberation lobby; [...]
O grindcore, em sua herança punk libertária, absorve e dissemina as mais diversas preocupações entre os próprios punks, [...] Uma das mais caras é a questão dos direitos dos animais, o vegetarianismo, o veganismo e o que é chamado de especismo.
