Not all of them anyway. Hear me out.
The skinhead subculture developed in England in the late 60s/early 70s. From what I gather, there was a lot of immigration from Jamaica at that time. These immigrants brought with them a love of ska and reggae music, and their “rudeboy” fashion sense. These immigrants mingled with working-class white kids at work and in school, and these kids began to adopt a lot of the culture and style. A lot of fashion decisions were practical (boots were important footwear in manual labor, for example, and cropped hair was an easy-to-maintain hairstyle).
So you have these kids interacting with black immigrants and adopting a lot of their culture. At the same time, punk rock is taking off. These skinheads develop their own style of punk rock, called Oi! and whose nuances we will leave to another thread. The etymology of Oi! is often debated, and the most frequent explanations are- it’s the British equivalent of ‘hey!’ and is often chanted in Oi! music, and it possibly also derived from the Latin “hoi polloi” (common people, working class). There actually is a band called Oi Polloi.
So, skinheads who adhere to the early ideals, e.g loyalty, patriotism, equality, and working class pride, and who listen to ska and reggae are refered to as “traditional” skins, hereafter called “trads.”
Late in the development of the skinhead subculture, certain fascists and neo-Nazis adopted the style of the earlier skins and created their own racist Oi! music. This is where skinheads get a bad name. The media latched onto the moniker of skinhead to refer to neo-Nazi groups, although trads refer to racist skins as simply Nazis, boneheads (because of the tendency of racist skinheads to completely shave, i.e. Bic, their heads) or Hammerskins, after a well-organized American racist skinhead organization.
But, in response to these neo-Nazi groups adopting much of skinhead culture, and giving them a bad name, a movement emerged known as SHARP, which stands for Skinheads Against Racial Prejudice. Sharps are actively involved in anti-racist action. Black, Latino, and Asian skinheads often become sharps, and can usually be found protesting KKK rallys or organizing concerts to promote equality and eradicate prejudice.
I happen to know a number of skinheads, including many Puerto Ricans. They’re regular people, with regular jobs, who enjoy listening to their style of music, who dress in boots, braces (suspenders), and tight jeans. The majority of skinheads are trads and sharps, meaning that racism is not part of their beliefs, and is something they actively protest. Many of them, proud of their working class backgrounds, get jobs in skilled labor. In fact, they are slowly but surely taking over the local pipefitter and surveyor unions, although those who are able pursue higher education- I know of a Puerto Rican sharp who is an immigration lawyer.
Not that all skinheads are angels- European skins are sometimes associated with football hooliganism. They’re often a rough-and-tumble bunch, because of their tough upbringing in the poorer sections of town. But I’m sick of them getting a bad rap- they’re just normal people who share an appreciation of Oi!, ska, and reggae music. They’re closely related to punk rockers, and both Oi! and punk music often trancends the division between the 2 groups, as do many political beliefs.
So, because this message board is dedicated to fighting ignorance, I felt the need to share. And because I know some might let loose those fightin’ words- CITE! -you will find some below.
This is Wiki’s article on sharps, although it is a bit short.
Here is the Myspace music page of Symarip- a ska group, composed entirely of black men, who have such hits as “Skinhead Moonstomp” and “Skinhead Girl” (both great songs, BTW).
Here is a picture of some white and black skinheads.
This is the Myspace music page of Red Alert, who are a good example of Oi! (New Age and In Britain are 2 of my favorite songs).