Rock Against Bush: When punk rock fought back against the US Presidency
Rock and roll has always been inherently opposed to the establishment, but never was that rebellion quite as confrontational as within the abrasive realm of punk rock. During the mid-2000s, though, that anti-establishment ethos became far more tangible, with the rise of the Rock Against Bush movement.
Taking its handbook from the days of countercultural hippiedom back in the 1960s, when a new age of rock rebellion fought against the Vietnam War and spurred on the fight for civil rights, Rock Against Bush was a means of punk and alternative rock outfits voicing their disgust over the Republican presidency of the early 2000s and, in particular, the war in Iraq. Spearheaded by NOFX’s Fat Mike and his Fat Wreck Records label, the movement saw countless groups from across the punk landscape united in defiance of the president.
Punk already boasted an extensive history of opposing Republican politics by the time the 2000s rolled around. Throughout the 1980s, for instance, Ronald Reagan was on the receiving end of near-constant musical assaults from the hardcore scene. In fact, Rock Against Reagan was a precursor to the anti-Bush movement, having been organised as a series of concerts by San Francisco’s Dead Kennedys. However, the Rock Against Bush movement was much more widespread in its rebellion.
Like its 1980s forefather, Rock Against Bush was first envisioned as a concert, evoking Woodstock Festival way back in 1969 and how it rallied against US involvement in Vietnam. To raise money for that concert tour, though, Fat Wreck issued a compilation CD, featuring politically-charged punk from the likes of Anti-Flag, Against Me!, Descendents, Pennywise, Dead Kennedys’ frontman Jello Biafra, and even Billy Bragg.
Another compilation followed, for which Operation Ivy, Sleater-Kinney, Bad Religion, Green Day, and The Offspring were just some of the more prominent names to appear on the tracklisting. Both of those compilations aimed to oppose Bush’s re-election campaign in 2004, urging typically alienated punks and fans of alt-rock to register to vote. Concert tours followed the compilation records to further spread that message, too, with NOFX typically occupying the headline slot.
Punk had long since been anti-war, going back to the days of The Clash, whose always politically-active output drew upon both the Vietnam War and Cold War-era politics, while always preaching a sense of left-wing resistance and unity. Never before, however, had the punk landscape been such a united front against war than through the Rock Against Bush movement, which was vital in opposing America’s illegal and – to this day – utterly devastating war in the Middle East.
Ultimately, of course, Fat Mike’s noble cause failed in its aims; George W. Bush was re-elected in 2004, and the Iraq war waged on until the early 2010s – if you take into account the conflict’s similarities with America’s recent invasion of Iran, though, it is clear to see that Bush’s impact has never really subsided in America’s political identity.
Nevertheless, Rock Against Bush remains one of the greatest musical acts of unity and rebellion against war and the American political establishment in punk history. Aside from anything else, those compilation CDs now act as an unparalleled historical record of the punk scene of the mid-2000s, too.
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