Richard Davis’ British documentary ‘On Resistance Street’ about the importance of music in ‘fighting racism and fascism’ in the United Kingdom was presented in Belfast and could lead to a new edition of ‘Rock Against Racism’ in 2024 .
“We need ‘Rock Against Racism’ again in London or Belfast. If we can organize concerts at all, we should be able to put on a bigger show with big bands and new bands that can draw attention to the problem of racism in this country”says director Richard Davis to Lusa agency.
The ‘Rock Against Racism’ (RAR) movement, between 1976 and 1981, directly involved ‘alongside the punk and new wave subculture’ and the power of reggae musicians against the increase in ‘the organizational power’ of the National Front (extremely right).
The two-hour documentary is inspired by ‘the messages’ of the British band Clash: political awareness against violence, against racism and fascism, in favor of creativity.
“After the screening in Belfast, Northern Ireland, where I was told the work should be shown in schools, the film will be shown everywhere, but we want to do a big anti-racist concert in London with big names, with speeches and artists because music has the merit of showing political and social reality. Music and culture are currently under attack and we want to fight against that.”he added.
For Richard Davis, 64 years old, music is currently ‘fragmented’ and he believes that ‘the music business’ does not reflect political, social and economic realities.
“’Rock’n’roll’ was made by young people and aimed at young people, now we have young people listening to ‘rock’n’roll’ made by older people, which changes the whole dynamic because the strongest rebellion always comes from the heart of the youngest. The rebellion of young people explains the ‘Rock Against Racism’ movement or bands like the Clash of Punk, because there was a connection between the stage, the musicians and the audience”he says, criticizing the current aloofness of publishers.
“What I know is that young rebels do not have rebellious musicians, because the publishers have turned their backs on all the dynamics that contributed to the emergence of important movements or the creation of awareness. What is the role of music now? The struggle is not over yet and there is hope and we must show our stands against racism”accuses the British director and political activist.
The documentary – directly critical of the British and North American far right – included testimonies from musicians such as Paul Simonon, former bassist of the Clash, Glen Matlock, founder of the Sex Pistols, Tony Robinson of the reggae band Aswad, Mykaell Riley of Steel Pulse , singer Paul Simmonds and actor Ray Gange, main character of the Clash film “Rude Boy” (1980).
‘On Resistance Street’ – independently produced – also includes the participation of British historian Rick Blackman, author of the book ‘Babylon’s Burning’ about the various anti-racist movements in the United Kingdom after the Second World War and which was recently presented in Portugal. ???
The documentary was also a direct response to the ‘provocation’ of former Conservative Prime Minister Boris Johnson, who declared in a television interview that he was an ‘unconditional fan’ of the Clash.
“When Boris Johnson declared the Clash his favorite group, we thought we had to do something about it. On social media, fan groups don’t reflect what the band really meant and I noticed a lot of people taking advantage of the band. History for completely opposite purposes , taking advantage of the opportunity to infiltrate opposing messages, as happened with Brexit.”explains Richard David.
For the director, the documentary is no longer a ‘film’ about Punk and the Clash, but ‘aims’ to project himself into the present and the future and lay the foundation for promoting ‘music and culture’, taking advantage draws from references that have proven their worth. “positive.”
“I met Joe Strummer [vocalista dos Clash] when I was 20 years old. I was sentenced to prison for being involved in confrontations with the police and when I got out of prison I met Mick Jones [guitarrista dos Clash] who, in a very nice way, gave me a free pass to all concerts of the ‘London Calling’ album tour [1979]’, he confesses, and emphasizes that ‘rebellious music’ ultimately took a new path in his life.
“One day I was having a conversation with Joe Strummer and he said to me, ‘Prison is for stupid people. [‘mugs’] and for freedom fighters [‘freedoom fighters’}. Faz qualquer coisa criativa, arranja uma guitarra e canaliza a tua energia em alguma coisa que seja criativa e positiva. Este é o meu conselho. Eu levei à letra o conselho de Strummer que transformou a minha vida: ser criativo e conseguir um rumo de vida. Comecei a cantar no metropolitano e agora faço filmes”, conclui Davis.
Source: DN
