Skinheads: A Working Class Ideology

Skinhead culture was birthed in Britain from the narrow lapelled, Lambretta driving, amphetamine fuelled Mods of the early 60’s, and would go on to epitomise British working-class youth for years to follow.

The helmet on the tattooed flag is a sign of a skinhead: The Trojan Record Logo

Skinhead culture was born out of austerity. Being a mod didn’t come cheap and there was ultimately no way the more working-class members of the culture could keep up with their more affluent contemporaries. Therefore, some Mods decided to trade in their parkas and tailored suits for cheaper, more utilitarian clothing. It was predominantly out of this change of fashion that Skinheads were born.

The more classic wave of mods would come to be known as ‘Peacock-Mods’ and this new off-shoot were referred to as ‘Hard-Mods’. The Hard-Mods would later adopt their new moniker in the late 60’s. Skinhead was now a term used by the men and women who belonged to the subculture, as well as by everyone else.

Motivated by social alienation, working-class unity and racial and cultural acceptance, Skinheads became more socially and politically conscious than the Mods that came before them. This would come to define the early waves of Skinheads.

This belief that unity within their class bracket was much more important than any racial or cultural divide Skinheads to adopt elements from the Jamaican-British and Caribbean people they lived with in the working-class estates of cities across Britain. Although the subculture began in London, it would spread throughout the nation, carrying its fashion and ideology.

One of the key elements adopted by Skinheads from the West-Indian and Jamaican communities was the heavy repetitive rhythms found in dub and ska music. This led to massive UK popularity for Jamaican artists such as Desmond Decker, Derrick Morgan and Laurel Aitken.

Boots and short, straight legged jeans are part of the classic skinhead uniform.

Much of the music listened to by Skinheads was distributed in the UK by Trojan Records, a company whose symbolism and ethos became synonymous with Skinheads as a whole.

Trojan Records was founded in 1968 and was instrumental in reggae’s global spread. The name stems from Duke Reid’s Trojan truck that was used as his sound-system in Jamaica. The truck itself was ironically built in Croydon, making the success of its name-sake record label in Britain all the more poetic.

As Skinhead culture evolved during the 70’s, the music followed suit. 2 Tone became the music of choice for many Skinheads epitomised by bands more regularly associated with Skinhead culture nowadays: Bands such as The Specials, Madness and The Selector.

Following the emergence of these bands in the 70s, Skinhead culture saw a second generation rise out of the 80’s, made up predominantly of ex-punks. Who brought a long with then more of the attitude as well as the music of the punk movement.

During this time, political divisions grew within the movement as more members looked to the extreme edges of the political spectrum. Many know of Skinhead as a culture that would ultimately be tainted by far-right, neo-Nazi affiliations, but just as many Skinheads turned to a More extremely left-wing political stance, and more than those who diverted politically, stood those who believed in what Skinheads culture was started on and would remain a-political.

SHARP's logo

The fear among Skinheads that their reputation would be tarnished by the neo-Nazism that plagued the subculture still lives on today. SHARP is one of the largest groups within Skinhead culture today – SHARP standing for Skinheads Against Racial Prejudice. And as much as it may have become a worn cliché today, the adage is true: boots and braces don’t make a racist.

By George Robson