MRR: What We Do Is Not Secret (celebrating BIPOC punk)

September 13, 2020 1:09 PM

Last year, Maximum Rocknroll stopped printing their fanzine (previously). Recently, MRR announced its efforts in a public, transparent commitment to change: "Over the years, and despite efforts to fight back against the white supremacy that permeates punk, Maximum Rocknroll has been guilty of reproducing those very same dynamics within our pages and our ranks. It is absolutely essential that this next iteration of Maximum be leveraged to amplify BIPOC punk voices."

More from Maximum Rocknroll:

We commit to the following changes in order to ensure that any and all resources available to Maximum Rocknroll contribute directly towards this goal:

1. We commit to maintaining a focus on uplifting the art and political ideas of Black artists, musicians, and activists.
2. Maximum Rocknroll has paused the publishing of columns by white people unless they are amplifying (e.g. interviewing) POC. This pause in publishing will continue until we are confident a broader range of perspectives can be reflected in the magazine.
3. Our collective members have pooled together money in order to offer donations to Black contributors. While MRR has always operated on a voluntary basis, we recognize that asking Black people for free labor reinforces accessibility barriers and white supremacy.

Two of the latest articles support that goal of amplifing BIPOC punk voices:

Decolonise Fest moves online: 1-6th Sept 2020

• Decolonise Fest website, and another DF 2020 webpage (currently has very limited content; Aug. 31, 202 archive has snapshot of what was presented), featuring music from
• New Orlean’s no wave genii Special Interest (Bandcamp)
• anti-colonial Kenyan punk band Crystal Axis
• South Asian American Punks The Kominas (Bandcamp)
• UK alt-americana act DeLila Black (Bandcamp)
• electronic synth punk artist PRNCSS (Soundcloud)
• wild goth plumes of synthy sounds from Netherland’s Lifeless Past

Anthems for the revolution: An interview with decolonial queer punk band Screaming Toenail (Bandcamp).

MRR amplified queer punk voices before, notably seen in the June 1992 "Absolutely Queer Issue," the March 2002 Queer Punk issue, and the Jan 2014 Queer Issue, all from the Internet Archive digital library of Maximum Rocknroll back issues.

posted by filthy light thief (1 comment total)

I'm probably not the first person to notice or point this out, but a little while ago I was watching a doc about the '70s and early '80s UK punk scene (which was full of music I love to this day) and it was a parade of white guys (and a few white women) saying variations on "you didn't even have to know how to play your instruments to be in a band!," and it occurred to me that I don't think I've ever heard a non-white musician say this.
posted by The Card Cheat at 7:48 AM on September 16, 2020