There's an iconic image on the cover of Henry Rollins' Black Flag tour diary Get In The Van, one of the first books that a whole lot of people read when they're first getting into hardcore: A whole phalanx of armored riot cops flooding into a 1984 Ramones/Black Flag show at the Palladium in Los Angeles. That night, as the show was getting out, police reportedly chased punks up and down Sunset Boulevard, beating people indiscriminately. It's not the only time this happened at a Black Flag show.
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The Month In Hardcore – June 2020
Anticipating the worst, police patrol outside of The Palladium while The Ramones and Black Flag are playing a concert inside. (Photo by Gary Leonard/Corbis via Getty Images)
|Gary Leonard/Corbis via Getty Images