Film Movement – 2019
Well made documentary tells us a familiar story
The documentary White Riot tells us the story of how a bunch of English punks in the seventies founded a grass-roots movement without any cellphones or internet, and launched a successful protest against the thriving nationalism in the UK in 1977.
The documentary’s main protagonist is Red Saunders who, disgusted with Eric Clapton’s racist remarks during a concert in Birmingham, decides to write a letter to NME to condemn Clapton’s remarks, referring to Clapton as music’s biggest colonialist and, much to his surprise, the letter gets published. This is the start of the organization Rock Against Racism which, in a true punk-DIY fashion, grows bigger and bigger. RAR-concerts are being organized all over the UK, with both white and black bands on the same stage.
Director Rubika Shaw presents this in a style similar to RAR’s magazine, Temporary Hoarding, with bits and pieces cut and pasted together. She also managed to include archival material from interviews, riots, shows, and protests; all of which which gives this documentary a unique insight of this period in UK’s history.
White Riot introduces viewers born before 1977 (like myself) to politicians like Enoch Powell, whose racially charged words not only sends shivers down the spine because of its contents, but also because of its familiarity. This reconfirms that racism was and is present in mainstream politics, and the speeches by right-wing politicians have been unchanged. The same is true for the way black people are harassed by the police. The testimonials persons of color in the film relating their experience with the police are the same we hear today, from different countries around the world. This doesn’t mean White Riot tries to draw parallels between the past and the present: it just doesn’t have to.
Of course there is the music. We see great concert footage and interviews with bands like The Clash, Steel Pulse, X-Ray Spex, Sham 69 and Tom Robinson. The film assures that music can bond us all, and the finale of the documentary is a beautiful ending that left me with hope and vigilance.
Quirijn’s primary focus for TGEFM is on album reviews and band interviews. When he’s not writing for the site, he can be found mixing sound at Fiction Studio, mixing up beats for as one part of hip-hop duo Breekpunt, or playing guitar for punk quartet Ink Bomb.