The Riot-Grrrl Feminism of the Early ‘90s in North America: The Punk Scene

Abstract

[Abstract] In this undergraduate essay, I have analysed and portrayed the ‘90s feminist punk movement Riot Grrrl in order to understand the relevant contributions they made by connecting punk and feminism at such an early time. This essay is divided up into three chapters—context, analysis and influences—apart from an introduction and a conclusion. The introduction will present the main ideas and source materials used throughout the book, that will be followed firstly by a chapter concerning the context and foundations of the movement. Secondly, I will deal with the analysis and presentation of some of the principles and values that shaped the Riot Grrrl agenda, such as sorority, collectivism, male chauvinism and sexism in the punk scene, the visibility of sexual abuse and street harassment, and also the concept of ethnicity within the Riot Grrrls. Thirdly, the decay of the movement and the contributions and influences they had on other artists and feminists of the twentieth-first century. Lastly, I have come to some conclusions concerning the enormous relevant the Riot Grrrls had at that very specific moment. In order to achieve these goals, I have consulted the fanzines in The Riot Grrrl Collection, edited by Lisa Darms, and some others filed on the internet. The fanzines, together with the music they created, constitute the bulk of the material that I have analysed and compiled. Further details, some fanzine samples and other materials can be found in the appendix.