FVK.

Punks claim to be some of the most open minded people on the planet, and in fact they are--yet they are not. Punks are against pop music and conformity, which is cool. However, if a song is good and I like it and it happens to be a pop artist and is a pop song, should it matter? No, I think not. Punks should appreciate any good music, and if a pop song to me is good music, then other punk should respect that. Or for another example, it seems most punks are smart and are anti-Bush and anti-war and jump on people that are Republican and pro Bush. This seems just wrong, because punks are supposed to be the people that are "open minded;" they must respect others' opinions even if they do not agree with them and think they are wrong. This is the supposed land of free speech, isn't it? Punks are supposed to be unstereotypical (if that makes sense at all). I am black and I listen to punk rock. Mind you, however, I do listen to rap too. I like to dance so I find hip-hop better music to dance to than punk; I can only mosh and jump around for so long. Also, I typically dress pretty plain. Actually what I wear can change depending on how I feel. If I am going to a party I tend to dress more hip-hop. On other days I wear a tie-dye shirt and Birkenstocks. On other days I wear the typical "punk" get up with Cons and the spikes. It depends on how I'm feeling. However, I thought the punk movement was not caring about what people think about you and what you are wearing or what your hair looks like. So why should it matter on a particular day whether or not I feel like wearing Ecko red jeans and on another I feel like wearing Birkenstocks or on another day a leather jacket? I thought that was the beauty of being punk. I've never actually called myself a punk because I do not believe in stupid labels and titles like that. I'm just Alexis. Do I like punk? Yes, I enjoy punk rock and rock in general a lot. I look up to bands like Bad Brains, Fugazi and Social Distortion. They play good music to me. I also like rap, though. I like Tupac, TI, Talib Kweli, Kanye West, Jay Z, and others. Is it wrong for me to like both? Am I too open minded? For example, a girl who is involved in the same activity as I am (who is a proclaimed "punk") assumed that I was all into rap and all ghetto and what not (the stereotypical black person). She found out that I liked punk rock and owned more Cons than her. Then when she found this out she said "Oh wow, Alexis, you're cooler than I thought." Now, she is punk and she claims to be a real open-minded person. But she already judged me before she even spoke a word to me, simply on the color of my skin and what I may choose to wear that day. I know I am a minority, especially in skating--black and female--but I don't care. I just wanted to give the so-called punks out there a big reality check. Honestly, just think to yourself how many times you judged someone based on their clothes or the color of their skin or their hair or what they were listening to. How many times have you discriminated against some different type of music, or a different opinion than yours? You have got to seriously be aware of stuff like that sometimes. And then take a minute and think to yourself if you truly are a punk. Also think about what you stand for as a person.

Alexis Armand

Atlanta, Georgia 

In the pit, who cares what color you are?--T-ed