one logo, still so offensive after all this time!

United States
June 26, 2009 10:51pm CST
I have had the same Bad Religion shirt since I was in 7th grade. It's a plain black shirt with the anti-cross logo on it. I remember having to turn it inside out in middle school, and getting dirty looks in high school. While going home for thanksgiving from college a few years ago, I had a gas station attendant start a fight with me while I was paying for my gas because of it. I swear that when I wear it, parents hide their children from me; even when my own are with me!!! I think this is the most effective logo a band has ever created! At the same time, I think it is sad how much power people will let a symbol have over them. I think the only logo a band could use to be found more offensive would be a simple, giant swastika. But I don't know, the anti-cross may still be more offensive to the general population. Thoughts?
2 responses
@maezee (41988)
• United States
27 Jun 09
I definitely agree with you on that one. It certainly IS offensive, but it's definitely fitting for Bad Religion. Practically their namesake. In my opinion..I think I interpret their logo as anti-RELIGION rather than ANTI-CHRIST or ANTI-CHRISTIANITY. Don't you? It's definitely about freedom of thought and expression, in my opinion, and the fact that your school made you turn it inside out is ridiculous, and actually attests to the idea of not being able to have your own way of thought and ability to express it freely. Kind of ironic. On a side note - I've had similar things happen to me in high school. ACTUALLY I got in trouble a NUMBER of times for having "inappropriate" logos on my shirts or hoodies. I used to love Kittie, pretty much an all-chick metal band, and a logo on one of their band shirts was a skull crushing a doll head. I admit..I probably wouldn't wear that now, but I definitely should have been able to wear it without hassle. But they made me change. They also made me change when I was wearing a shirt promoting Lars Frederikson's side project, Lars F & the b-words (rhymes with fastards) - because of the swear word. I suppose that's a little different, but it still upset me all the same. In another unrelated event (sorry for the tangent here..), I was wearing a Bacardi promo t-shirt (that someone gave me for free, probably at a concert) - and I got in trouble for that and had to change out of it at school. It's ridiculous how much people take to offense; and how ambiguous it is. I personally find anything from South Pole offensive - but you don't see me making people change. Ahh, oh well. *shrugs*. At any rate, that gas attendant sounds like a jerk! It's so funny how people can totally misinterpret one symbol and try to blame YOU for THEIR misinterpretation. Even the swastika, while of course it later became a sign for supporting Nazism, was originally a symbol for "peace". Ahhh, how people jump to conclusions without even asking you to clarify what it means.
1 person likes this
• United States
27 Jun 09
First of all, i was just spending like 10 minutes responding to this and I must've hit a wrong button or something because I lost it all!!! So, this response is not going to be as in depth as I originally had it!!! I agree with you that the logo is meant to be aimed at organized religion in general, not at christ or christianity in general. Try explaining that to the person who has already decided you will be burning eternally because of a wardrobe decision! :) And I think one of my friend's got in trouble for wearing a lars shirt also...how totally stupid. That was like 8 years ago now....time flies. As far as the swastika and misinterpretation goes; I think racism is one of those things that people feel very strongly and emotionally about. This emotion leads them to act out and say things that are just as ignorant as the people they are "against". My boyfriend has an "odin's eye" tattoo (which is a symbol of norse mythology) but he gets accused of being a "nazi" all the time. Norway is not Germany and Hitler was not Odinist! Come to think of it, my friends and I get accused of being racists or supremacist on a fairly regular basis simply because of all of our tattoos, especially the males with shaved heads...funny thing is, one of my tattoos actually says "UNITY" another "STAND AS ONE" and if you look at my profile picture, you will see i'm not exactly the ideal aryan! Well, I know we've gotten a little off topic, but isn't that just the way it goes!
• United States
19 Jul 10
Has nothing to do with your topip but hell yah, iv never met enybody else with a unity tatoo. That was my first on my forearm.
• United States
19 Jul 10
People are just full of it, I dont think that that should even be considered offensive. Religious people just take everything to heart and then some. Anybody who doesnt beleive in what they do or anbody displaying ANY type of anti religious tshirts or stickers or whatever is like a personal insult to them. As if they were god itself. The swastika represents mass genocide, torture, and then some, so i would say a swastika is much much much more offensive, or atleast i would hope people thought so. but christains, probly would have the odasity to find something that represents thousands of innocents murdered less offensive then their precious symbol being crossed out.