Whether they are calling out an injustice at their favorite stadium or lashing out against the cancellation of their favorite show, fans have a long history of protesting. For many, their passion for their favorite shows provides them with community and a sense of identity, and losing that connection can feel devastating. That’s why fans have a tendency to fight to keep their shows alive, even going so far as organizing letter-writing campaigns and hunger strikes.
The articles in this special issue highlight the varying ways that fans express their discontent with the world around them. Gloria Jimenez and Bruce Martin’s piece discusses how members of the Angel City Brigade, a group that sits in sections 121 and 122 at Dignity Health Sports Park for every Galaxy home game, refused to speak during their team’s match on Friday night in protest against ICE raids that have targeted Southern California’s Latino communities.
Black fans in the Civil Rights Movement turned their love for football into a nonviolent weapon, using their clubs and stadiums to protest segregated seating, as well as discriminatory policies. They marched, plastered their communities with banners, and encouraged friends to join them by writing in to the Black press and famous writers such as Jim Hall and Marion Jackson.
The articles in this special issue highlight the complexities and challenges of fan activism across a variety of global contexts. Christian Brandt, Maryna Krugliak, and Robert Warnecke’s case study on Germany and Ukraine activist fan communities provides an important comparison of the relational and glocal motivations, tactics, and spaces of activist fan action that are connected globally as a social movement but determined by each local context.