For mainstream onlookers, Hawaiian shirts worn with tactical gear may fool them about the boogaloo’s true colours. Hawaiian shirts’ meanings play out in surprising ways within the far-right’s efforts to make their ideology mainstream. On the other hand, Indigenous Hawaiians perceive these motifs as stereotyping their authentic culture. On the one hand, we have the problematic association of Hawaiian prints with laid-back lifestyles. Hawaiian shirts have historically symbolized place, consumerism, colonialist oppression and the opposition to conventional culture, and have been an alternative to formal wear. They are also savvy when it comes to managing their public image and hiding their actions.Īs a scholar studying the intersections of fashion, visual culture and social issues, the boogaloo’s adoption of Hawaiian shirts troubles me. The boogaloo are, however, unified by violent militant attitudes and terrorist tendencies. The boogaloo community includes far-right, pro-gun, anti-government libertarians spanning a wide spectrum of ideologies including white supremacy, anarchy and a range of conspiracy theories. More recently the term has been used to refer to anti-government sentiment, civil unrest and the desire for a second civil war. The term boogaloo comes from the 1980s movie Breakin’ 2: Electric Boogaloo. The boogaloo is a fragmented community that began as a firearms board on 4chan and then blossomed on Facebook. This mix of street fashions has become an identifying characteristic of boogaloo boys or bois. Their fondness for aloha-infused militia looks has caught the interest of journalists and prominent news outlets. They’re gaining notoriety not for being linked to domestic acts of terrorism in the United States, but for their penchant for Hawaiian shirts. Members of the loosely organized far-right “boogaloo” movement are making the rounds in the news.
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