Juggalos’ March On Washington Is No Longer The Protest America Needs
In 2011, the FBI’s National Gang Intelligence Center released a report classifying Juggalos, fans of the infamous clown-themed hip-hop duo Insane Clown Posse, as a “loosely organized hybrid gang.” According to Juggalos, Juggalos have been unfairly targeted and discriminated against ever since, and starting last July, ICP have been organizing a massive Juggalos’ March On Washington in DC to protest.
Now, a lot has changed between last July and now. Back then, we all assumed that Hillary Clinton would be our next president, and the idea of a Million Clown March seemed a little absurd but not too actively harmful. Instead, we somehow got Donald fucking Trump elected, and the idea of a bunch of Juggalos marching on Washington suddenly became a whole lot more offensive, considering the fact that plenty of people of color, women, and LGBT folks are, like, actually afraid for their lives right now.
But never ones to by stopped by a little thing like “good taste,” ICP are forging ahead with their plans for the march. Today, as Billboard points out, in the wake of the massive Women’s March On Washington and its sister marches around the globe, they’ve launched a new website and a countdown until the Juggalo March on 9/16. “To be sure, this is NOT a party, Gathering of the Juggalos, or a frivolous social event,” ICP explain on the site’s F.A.Q. section. “This march is a serious, peaceful public demonstration, organized for one purpose — to deliver a message to the world showing how Juggalos have been unfairly stigmatized and discriminated against simply for identifying as being part of a particular music-based subculture. The golden rule of the march for participants is simply this: If you’re not serious about being there, just stay home.”
To demonstrate the seriousness of their cause, they’ve organized an afterparty featuring Vanilla Ice and 2 Live Crew at the Jiffy Lube Live amphitheater in nearby Bristow, Virginia.