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Huey P. Long

(1,932 posts) Thu Dec 29, 2011, 09:42 PM Dec 2011

Justin Sane of Anti-Flag: The Occupy Movement Gives Me A Lot Of Hope

Interview With Justin Sane of Anti-Flag: The Occupy Movement Gives Me A Lot Of Hope

Posted In Activism,Blog,Entertainment,Interviews,Music,Politics
By Justin Beckner

The dawn of another brutal election year is upon us and the majority of the country has developed a feeling of distain for politics all together. Still, masses of protesters have flocked to the streets to speak out against corporate greed and corrupt government practices. Never has there been a better time for a band like Anti-Flag to make new record and gear up for another world tour.

Anti-Flag frontman, Justin Sane has relentlessly spoken out against injustice since he and his friends formed the band back in 1988. Sane has long been hailed as one of the most intelligent songwriters of our generation. While musically, Anti-Flag is a direct descendent of classic punk rock bands, lyrically they ring reminiscent of a Woody Guthrie or Billy Bragg. Anti-Flag had a few minor hits with songs like “Protest Song” and “Turncoat” which could be heard being played at almost any protest demonstration during the Bush Administration. It is rather common to find Anti-Flag playing shows at protests. They recently played at an Occupy Wall Street Demonstration. Sane draws a lot of his songwriting topics from his experiences playing at and marching in these kinds of events.

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JB: Were there any non-political bands that you were influenced by on a more technical level?

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JB: You’ve spent a fair amount of time at the Occupy Wall Street Protests. Do you think the message that is being sent by the protesters is getting through to those who need to hear it?

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JB: That sense of injustice and imbalance has certainly been getting much harder for people to ignore in recent years. The top 1% of Americans control 42% of the country’s wealth and assets. That’s a pretty staggering figure.

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JB: Over the past couple weeks I’ve noticed major news networks belittling the protesters on Wall Street. How do you feel when you hear people say that the Occupy Protesters don’t know what they want?

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JB: With the dawn of another election year upon us I’ve got to ask, how do you think these protests are going to influence the elections in 2012?

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http://suicidegirlsblog.com/blog/interview-with-justin-sane-of-anti-flag-the-occupy-movement-gives-me-a-lot-of-hope/

8 replies

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Highlight:

Justin Sane of Anti-Flag: The Occupy Movement Gives Me A Lot Of Hope (Original Post) Huey P. Long Dec 2011 OP

I love this... Sarah Ibarruri Dec 2011 #1

Anti Flag, Die for your government link below. sarcasmo Dec 2011 #4

Punk rock! I LOVE it. nt Sarah Ibarruri Dec 2011 #5

Thanks for that. -eom Huey P. Long Dec 2011 #7

K&R! Fire Walk With Me Dec 2011 #2

Great band, anti war not anti American. sarcasmo Dec 2011 #3

K&R (nt) T S Justly Dec 2011 #6

du rec. nt xchrom Dec 2011 #8

Sarah Ibarruri

(21,043 posts)

1. I love this...

Reply to Huey P. Long (Original post)

Thu Dec 29, 2011, 10:13 PM

Dec 2011

"One thing that was really clever about the way the Occupy movement was structured was that there is no figurehead leading the movement. That’s a good thing because leaders can be coopted, they can be bought, they can be bribed, they can be stroked in different ways. The Occupy movement is a true democratic process and a true movement of the people."

I'd never heard of Anti-Flag, but the name of their group is great because it brings to mind the FAKE PATRIOTISM of the right wingnuts. You know, the worship of the flag, while at the same time destroying life for the majority of Americans. That kind of thing.