Skateboarding as an alternative lifestyle and subculture

Skateboarding: An Alternative Lifestyle

Skateboarding was born in the 1950s, an evolution of the popular scooter. Simple pieces of wood with roller skating wheels affixed to the bottom, these early skateboarders had no idea they were developing a sport that capture the fascination of generations. However, the sport of skateboarding has morphed into something much more. It is now a multi-billion dollar industry that has social implications.

This paper explores the concept of skateboarding as an actual alternative lifestyle and the reasoning why it is so often classified as such. To begin, an overview of the definition of an alternative lifestyle will be discussed. The commonalities skateboarding shares with other labeled alternative cultures will be reviewed. Lastly, whether or not this classification of skateboarding as its own unique culture is accurate will be overviewed.

Skateboarding: An Alternative Lifestyle

Skateboarding was born in the 1950s, an evolution of the popular scooter. Simple pieces of wood with roller skating wheels affixed to the bottom, these early skateboarders had no idea they were developing a sport that capture the fascination of generations. However, the sport of skateboarding has morphed into something much more. It is now a multi-billion dollar industry that has social and political implications.

This paper explores the concept of skateboarding as an actual alternative lifestyle and the reasoning why it is so often classified as such. To begin, an overview of the definition of an alternative lifestyle will be discussed. The commonalities skateboarding shares with other labeled alternative cultures will be reviewed. Lastly, whether or not this classification of skateboarding as its own unique culture is accurate will be overviewed.

Skateboarding's Commonalities with Other Alternative Cultures

One of the most direct comparison of skateboarding to an alternative culture is the culture that evolved from hip hop and rap music. Brayton (2005) describes the rise of the "white negro" through skateboarding. Where hip hop and rap music have traditionally focused on the victimized African-American male, and more recently also the African-American female, skateboarding has evolved due to the disruption of the privileges white males historically enjoyed, since the advent of the civil rights movement. Zirin (2005) notes that sports often have roots in oppression. The result of this white male displacement has been the creation of a vociferous group of angry, white males, according to Brayton.

These skateboarding white males exist on the periphery of society. They band together in "hopes of rescuing their own social advantage from the ravages of such purported assaults on white people as affirmative action, increased illegal immigration, and multiculturalism" (Brayton, 2005). These concerns, as Brayton further notes, are reflected in popular culture and through the spectacle of sport, such as skateboarding. Much like the popular culture that has arisen with hip hop and rap music.

Parallels can be clearly seen between these two very different subcultures, beyond that of the development catalyst of feeling oppressed. Both cultures have developed popular musical styles. With hip hop and rap, these two subcultures are centered on music. However, skateboarding too has common music styles. Punk is one of the most popular musical genres found. In both instances, it's music that expresses social concerns, political messages, and common ideologies. Sport too is a common component of both of the subcultures as well.

As music is a primary focus in hip hop and rap cultures, sport is a primary focus in the skateboarding culture. However, sport is present in both. Obviously skateboarding is a common cultural behavior in the skateboarding subculture, but for hip hop and rap cultures, the sport of dance is a binding thread amongst their members. In fact, the sport of dance, including its competitive aspects, is almost as integral as the music itself in the hip hop lifestyle (Leach, 2008). This can be seen with evolution of the music and associated dance styles, such as changes made to the original breakdancing to today's hyper-aggressive crunk.

Language too is a common thread in both hip hop and rap cultures as well as skateboarding culture, with their own words and expressions unique to the subculture. Art, especially in the form of graffiti can be found in both as well, letting the world know that the subculture does indeed exist. Fashion too, although different for both subcultures, are unifying themes seen in both. Oftentimes this fashion statement is an outsider's first method of understanding that the individual belongs to this specific subculture.

Why is Skateboarding Characterized as an Alternative Lifestyle and Culture and is this Characterization Accurate

Skateboarding is characterized as an alternative lifestyle and culture due to implication that it is a subculture that lies outside of the societal norm. It is implied that the skateboarding lifestyle is connected to a specific skateboarding subculture. However, is this characterization accurate? The answer is simply -- yes.

Skateboarding meets the typical definition of what comprises an alternative lifestyle and culture. Skateboarding has its own societal practices and habits. As mentioned, the sport of skateboarding is central to the culture and lifestyle. This is an activity, especially when taken to the extreme of competitive skateboarding found increasing in popularity since the 1980s, in which a majority of normal society does not partake. The music popular in the skateboarding culture, particularly punk, is also not listened to by a majority of society's population. Skateboarding fashion and slang may have permeated more traditional society (much like that of hip hop and rap); however, it is not nearly as pervasive as found in the actual skateboarding subculture members, where it is an integral part of their lifestyle.

The distinctive lifestyle and culture of skateboarding is based on a combination of racial differences, political differences, and age differences. As Brayton (2005) notes, while American minorities feel oppressed by the majority of White Americans, there is a segment of White males who have felt the effects of reverse discrimination. Programs, such as Affirmative Action, have resulted in a loss of power and control for the American White male. Sports, such as skateboarding, has allowed those unhappy with this reverse oppression a means of developing their own culture where they still rule without a bias against them for being White. Sports have been an integral part of societal relations and have affected social forces, for as long as man has played sports ("How can history," XXXX). This falls in line with political policies regarding reverse discrimination and entitlement that, as a result, while assisting one demographic injures another. The sport of skateboarding binds its members together. Age, however, may be the largest demographic factor in the establishment of skateboarding as an alternative lifestyle and culture.

Today's world is a world where the Baby Boomer generation is omnipresent. Generation X, as youth are known to do, rebelled against this older generation. They were looking for their own culture where they had control and they made the rules, as opposed to living under the thumb of their parents and grandparents. Now, Generation Y (and the entering of Generation Z) has continued to fill in the societal gaps as Gen Xers have moved on to more traditional societal roles. However, the age demographic of the skateboarding culture is that of the young, and likely will remain to be a defining facet.

Conclusion

Since the advent of skateboarding, more than a half a century ago, it has evolved from a simple child's mode of fun travel to an entirely different subculture and lifestyle. This multi-billion dollar industry is also an alternative culture, in the sense that members lie on the fringes of normal society. They follow their own rules, customs, and patterns of behavior. Much like hip hop and rap cultures, skateboarding culture has its own music, language, art, fashion, and sport that binds its members together. This culture was formed in response to several factors. The first being reverse discrimination White males felt with the introduction of programs such as Affirmative Action. Other factors including common political affiliation and age too have helped form this unique culture and lifestyle that began with Generation X, has been passed to Generation Y, and is the legacy Generation Z is about to inherit.