Slide 1: My name is Sam Swanson; I’m in my third year here at Full Sail University. When I was in seventh grade, my best friend was a year older than me and I spent that entire year trying to get her friends to like me – to absolutely no avail. That was the first year I ever cut myself, a habit that took me five years to break. Slide 2: After that year, I decided that there were things much more important than trying to make other people happy, and I started concentrating on making myself happy. I started wearing clothes that expressed how I felt and bands that I liked and trust me, none of those kids I was trying to impress looked at me after that. But I had found something more. Slide 3: Contrary to popular belief, the morals and practices within the punk community are incredibly upstanding, and far more commendable than they’re given credit. Slide 4: As hard as that little knowledge pill might be to swallow, I’m going to follow it up with a big glass of water. (Or beer, if it’s more to your liking.) Before you avert your eyes or turn up your nose, give the punk community a chance. We’re not so different from you – we’re just more open in our expression. Slide 5: The punk community is rich with morals that we adhere very strongly to by 1) Upholding certain standards of manners and charity similar to/and yes, even surpassing the rest of the population, 2) accepting people from all walks of life, without prejudice, and fighting for their rights to stay true to themselves, and 3) maintaining a level of community seldom found in other realms of society. Slide 6: The amount of manners and charity present within the punk community could very well shock you. But we are held together by the respect and support of the people around us, and that’s a fact we work hard not to forget. Slide 7: My boyfriend has been a part of our local music scene for the past five years, and to this day makes sure that every member of his band stays to watch every set played at one of their shows, even if they were the first band of the night. It’s a courtesy to the people on stage that’s always appreciated and often reciprocated. Slide 8: Our charities are abundant, but I’d like to quickly name a couple. Shallow Water is a clothing company started by Dan “Soupy” Campbell, vocalist of the band The Wonder Years. Slide 9: His idea was to create limited edition shirts, designed by new artists every month, to raise money for charities of the artists’ choosing. Among them has been the Livengrin Foundation for Addiction Recovery, Music for a Cure, and Mass Equality. Slide 10: Andrew Shiraki, or Koji, is an artist known not only for his beautiful musicianship but also for his kind spirit and innate desire to spread peace. Over the years, Koji has partnered with organizations such as RESOLVE and The Voice Project, and a portion of the proceeds from each sale of his first full length are being donated to 350.o

1. The Morals
of the Punk
Community
An Ignite Presentation
by Sam Swanson
Photo courtesy of John Neitge

2. Photo courtesy of Sam Swanson
Punk is self
expression

3. Yes, They Exist
And They Just Might Surprise You
THe Morals
of the
Punk
Community

4. http://www.flickr.com/photos/82386510@N00/2657166465/
http://www.flickr.com/photos/8383928@N06/4933080134/
http://www.flickr.com/photos/21300369@N06/3665434251/
Let me help you
wash down this
new pill of
knowledge

5. 1: Manners and
Charity
2: Acceptance
3: Community

6. Manners
and
Charity

7. M
a
n
n
e
r
s
Photo courtesy of Sam Swanson
My boyfriend’s
band, R-Dent
performing at the
Phoenix Taproom

8. C
H
a
r
I
T
Y
Photo courtesy of Sam Swanson
Dan “Soupy”
Campbell of The
Wonder Years,
wearing a Shallow
Water shirt while
performing a week
before the
organization was
launched in 2012

9. C
H
a
r
I
T
Y
Photo courtesy of Sam Swanson
Shallow Water
February 2012
design for
Mass Equality

10. C
H
a
r
I
T
Y
http://www.flickr.com/photos/11849171@N00/6638843191/
Koji performing
in Harrisburg, PA
December 2011

11. ACCEPTANCE

12. http://www.flickr.com/photos/66756612@N08/8481630356/
Laura Jane Grace
performing with
Against Me!
July 2012

13. -Hostage Calm
vocalist Chris
“Cmar” Martin
“Let this be a way for our punk
community to show our support:
support for individuality, equality
and the ideals that are foundational
to the hardcore scene.”

14. Community

15. Photo courtesy of Sam Swanson
Outside my house with members of
the band Handguns after housing
them last February

16. (screenshot taken of this URL)
Step 1: Brag about being a thief on the internet
Step 2: Get caught and tracked down by fans

17. http://www.flickr.com/photos/26057782@N06/4127137166/
Defeater and fans

18. Find my friends and me
in these pictures,
Courtesy of Ally Newbold

19. Dan Campbell
of The
Wonder Years
and Brett
Jones of
Fireworks
Photo courtesy of Ally Newbold

20. Photo courtesy of Ally Newbold
The Wonder Years,
Fireworks, Hostage Calm,
and Misser tour family