HISTORY
Rock Against Racism emerged in 1976 as a political and cultural movement in reaction to a rise in racist attacks on the streets of the United Kingdom. From 1976 to 1982, the activists behind the movement organized festivals and tours, local gigs, and clubs throughout the country to bring together music fans of all races to discourage young people from embracing racism.
To kick off the movement, 100,000 people marched six miles to Trafalgar Square to Victoria Park in London for an open air concert featuring acts such as The Clash, Steel Pulse, Tom Robinson Band, and others in April of 1978, thus solidifying one of the biggest music-fosuced anti-racism efforts to date.
RELAUNCH
Rock Against Racism is a non-profit organization consisting of a collective of musicians, artists, and music industry leaders continuing the crucial work of combating systemic racism.
ROCK AGAINST RACISM'S MISSION IS TO USE MUSIC AS A BRIDGE TO HONOR INTERCULTURAL DIFFERENCES AND TO CREATE RACIAL JUSTICE. OUR GOALS ARE TO:
UNITE
By bringing together musical acts of diverse genres, music can be the catalyst to inspire us to acknowledge and embrace diversity and create more racially equitable communities.
EDUCATE
Through an anti-racist lens, we will work with a UCLA Diversity & Inclusion Curriculum Development Professor to create intercultural educational materials and videos for all ages that will illustrate the importance of challenging our self- awareness around cultural biases and encouraging conversations around racism and identity.
ACTION
By working closely with the music and entertainment industries, we will infuse anti-racist messaging into people’s homes, on their screens, in their headphones, and on the streets to foster racial justice.
Photography Credit: Syd Shelton & Ray Stevenson (White Riot)
Rock Against Racism is a fiscally sponsored project of The Giving Back Fund, a 501(c)(3).