Exploring the Riot Grrrl movement through our queer feminist lens.
After an unplanned hiatus, social media intern Franzi Lewis is back from technology hell to bring you her second episode of The Lens, all about the riot grrrl movement of the early nineties and its connection to the queer community. For anyone from generations X or Y, riot grrrl is a massively influential part of the fabric of both punk rock and feminism.
For others, it was a mere blip on the radar. For the queer community, though, riot grrrl is complex. Many of us grew up smeared with red lipstick and black eyeliner, barrettes placed haphazardly in our messy hair, but recent developments have made us wary of aligning ourselves with riot grrrl. Bikini Kill and Le Tigre frontwoman Kathleen Hanna, one of the movement’s originators, has been linked to anti-trans sentiments and the whole movement has an outdated gender essentialism at its core.
However, we cannot and should not abandon it. Twenty years ago, sexuality, gender identity and feminism were in a different phase – hell, third wave feminism was only in its infancy. What we in the queer community can do is take riot grrrl and run with it, in our own inclusive way. In this episode of The Lens, Lewis takes us on a journey through riot grrrl, from its roots to Pussy Riot, who have brought a lot of the movement’s ideology to life in a way that has cost them dearly, but has inspired people to start the riot anew.
Watch episode two right here, and subscribe to the Curve YouTube channel to have our latest interviews, event coverage and vlogs sent directly to your email.