ASN6 - 'Out of Step': is Straight Edge Punk a post-anarchist movement? (Francis Stewart)
Channel: Jim Donaghey
Date: 2020-09-03

Francis Stewart

Abstract:
It has been argued that Straight Edge emerged or coalesced in response to a perceived crisis in punk more broadly (Peterson, 2009; Anderson & Jenkins, 2001). Many who claimed edge, or used the phrase as a self-identification marker felt that there was a crisis in both behaviour (the drunk punk) and ethical core (punk had lost its way and was in danger of becoming irrelevant). In part, that view was shaped by personal experiences with drug and/or alcohol addiction, but also with the Protestant core at the heart of Straight Edge (Stewart 2017 & 2019). However, it is also worth asking to what extent was this an indication of a crisis between punk and anarchism? 

The relationship between many iterations of punk and variances of anarchism has always existed in a state of flux and near-constant tension. It is further complicated by the assumption made by many that to be a punk is to be an anarchist, which is not at all true. Within Straight Edge, there can be a strong conservatism – especially during the ‘90s – that manifests in ways that are seemingly antithetical to anarchist values or approaches (Kuhn, 2010). Does this, therefore, make Straight Edge punk a post-anarchist punk movement (Newman 2015)? A Foucauldian decisive will not to be governed? Or does the focus on the self within the movement make it more aligned with individual anarchism (Stirner 1844; Proudhon 1849; Thoreau 1849)? A Nietzschean will to power that is reliant upon the death of God? 

Drawing upon interviews and participant observations in Straight Edge communities in the UK, Ireland and the USA this paper will suggest that the emergence of Straight Edge indicates an unresolved crisis between punk and anarchism. Utilising interview quotes and graffiti images this paper will seek to ascertain which, if any, iteration of anarchism Straight Edge most closely aligns itself with – taking into account variances for cultural context, socio-economic status and marginalised realities. Doing this will demonstrate that Straight Edge punk is an intentional response to a perceived crisis within punk, a crisis that is partially linked with punk’s complicated relationship to anarchism.