Nostalgia, community and resistance : Counter-cultural politics in a Finnish skinzine

Abstract

Culture and community building are an essential part of the appeal of the far-right and fascist movements. Studying their cultural products is therefore important for a deeper understanding of the movement and their modus operandi. One elemental part of their culture are the so-called zines, small-scale do-it-yourself magazines intended for scene members. In certain respects, the far-right zines, skinzines, follow the forms and trends of other underground publications, especially punk-zines, with which they also share the resistance identity as stigmatized and marginalized actors. However, the political visions in skinzines are more or less opposite to ‘democratic zines’, creating certain tension between their political goals and the general media logic. In this article, I will explore a Finnish skinzine Ukonvasama and their community, analysing the efforts to build a nationalist movement and to mobilize support in relation to a retreat to nostalgic counter-culture they also promote. Ukonvasama is both a nostalgic project of former skinheads and a political project of far-right activists.