Been seeing a lot back ‘n’ forth about the usage of the safety-pin as signifier. For many, it’s perceived as short-hand for safety, solidarity and resistance, one that actually dates back much further than might be imagined -- its roots, I believe, belonging to the Dutch resistance in WWII.
The safety-pin as symbol has recently been re-adopted in the wake of the uptick of bigotry and racism stemming from Brexit in the UK, and the ascent of Trump and his supporters here at home, designed to send a message of both support to the potentially oppressed and defiance against the violent tenets of nativism, the very sort the Trump “movement” has come to represent. It’s a small gesture but, for many, a meaningful one.
Still others, however, have taken that perceived signifier and called into question whether certain individuals (i.e. progressive liberal whites) should be wearing it, being that they cannot fully, realistically empathize.
Personally speaking, I'm of the age that still associates the sporting of safety-pins with all things Punk Rock. I first spotted them on this guy...
Some have been quick to point out that the punks adopted the safety-pin for the same reasons (solidarity and resistance), but history largely doesn't back that up. Popular consensus asserts that New York’s own punk pioneer Richard Hell adopted the habit, if only for the practical purposes of keeping his clothes together. Britain’s Malcolm McLaren took a shine to that aesthetic during a sojourn here managing the New York Dolls and later went back to the UK and grafted it onto the Sex Pistols. Of course, the Pistols et al. were also no strangers to sporting the swastika for shock value, which arguably conflates and confuses things even further
In any case, while I entirely applaud the sentiment behind re-introducing the safety-pin as a sign of dissent against Trumpism -- especially if it ruins the day of any meat-necked bro in a “Make America Great” baseball cap -- it’s ultimately just window-dressing for decent human conduct, which is something no one should be absolved from. Put simply, if you see someone getting violently hassled in the streets because they’re not white, or because they’re LBGTQ or because they’re female (…or they’re handicapped, … or they’re wearing the color blue, … or they’ve expressed an affinity for coffee without sugar, … or they’re a devout Doobie Brothers fan, … or they didn’t enjoy “Frozen,” … or…ANYTHING) and you're in a position to do something about it, then you should fucking intervene. It’s basically your duty as a sentient, compassionate human being.
So, yeah, if you want to wear a safety-pin, that’s great, but getting caught up about who should wear one and who shouldn’t just reeks of the same, precious nonsense that turned a lot of people off about the Occupy Wall Street movement -- i.e. the earnest protocols of “MIC CHECK” public speaking and “twinkling” instead of applause, etc.
My suggestion is that instead of worrying about whether your strategically applied safety-pin is sending the right message, how about you just make sure NOT TO BE A HATEFUL, OPPRESSIVE DICK and look out for your fellow citizens in these ugly, uncertain times.
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