1st Knowledge of Che from RATM? - Am I the only one?

[j]

Anyone else first come to know about Che because of Rage Against the Machine?

Isn't that totally fucked up?

j

[Rob]

I sorta got my first knowledge of Che from RATM. Well, my mom explained who the cool face on the t-shirt was.

[Fires of History]

I knew about Che before Rage got big, but I have used that 'reference' as a window of opportunity many times. It's easier to start a conversation about Che with politically active youth when you can refer to Rage as a starting point. This is either sad or not sad. I'm not sure.

However, it has at least- for sure- ensured that more people have been introduced to Che. I don't think it's a bad thing that today's youth learns about Che, gets involved, or even just asks more critical questions because of a band. After all, how many of us older folks (ha, well, 25+) have been given great thoughts and questions from other bands? I know I have.

(Edited by Fires of History at 9:19 pm on June 15, 2002)

[Michael De Panama]

I really got first knowledge of RATM from Che, actually. I mean, I'd never really sat down and listened to Rage before I found out their politics and who they support. You know?

[Lefty]

same here

[ratm545]

rage has opened tons of doors to me, from mumia to che. i thank them for opening my eyes more

[ILoveShrub]

I went to a shop and was looking around for some rage patches and I found this one with Che, but I didn't know who it was. The guy at the counter asked me who it was. I didn't know. So he told me I couldn't buy it untill he gave me a history lesson. And that is how I learned of Che.

[Nickademus]

i personally didn't get my political awareness from ratm and i was aware of che before ratm.

i was however, largely influed politically by public enemy. music, when used for the purpose, has a very important role to play in encouraging activism and politics etc.

[TxFreedomFighter]

I had heard the name "Che" early on in my high school career, but never really learned who he was until the Rage shirt. Thankfully Rage opened my eyes and now i can't learn enough about the man. I also thank Rage for educating me on other important political issues.

[pseudo christ]

RATM came to me through che, i saw his face on one of their patches and decided tio give them a listen. A most enlightening experience

[red senator]

Yeah, RATM brought politics to mainstream rock, but I can't tell you how many times people have thought that that famous picture of che was just a picture of Zack Delarocha and I had to set them straight.

[abstractmentality]

i had been listening for quite a few years, and seeing Che's picture there, and in many other places, influenced me to look up this nameless face and see what he was about.

[themanwill]

i live in the uk so we never cover american history so i found not about Che, Mumia and even Zapata from Rage. Its not sad everyone finds out their own way this is ours.

[Avamatha]

I was doing a schoolproject about nelson mandela, but I didn't find any information about him from the net in finnish, so I had to find a new one.

Che Guevara.

Who was him again? I remenber my sister's boyfriend mentioned that name sometime ago. Umm, I think he was the... Oh, yes, now I remember. I'll do my project about him! (Besides, I'm interested, what guy was he to be exact..)

Well, this is interesting. Hey look, here is a motorcycle diary of his! Maybe I'll read this...

Wait a sec.. Didn't that girl from our school last year have a shirt with Che on? Oh yes, it was this.. what it was.. Rage against the machine, the one I saw in tv a long time ago.

Maybe I'll find out.

--

And that is how I became a Che admirer and a fan of RatM. :)

[Sandanista]

i found out about che from rage, but it doesnt mean hes not as big an influence on my life.

[hazard]

very true. I bought the rage falg with che on it and decided I should find out who in the hell he was before I flew it.

first time I saw the che bust was on a RATM t-shirt my first week at university. I hardly liked rage then and remember the dude wearing it trying to explain who he was between swigs of beer. I had forgotten since then who he was and what he was about.

[Politrickian]

I was in spain and you could buy a very cool looking flag with Che Guevara there... My mom told me who he was(note that I had interesse in Communism before that and that both my parents are left)

I hardly ever heard of RATM before(my friend are fans and told me that they were ok) that and I never heard a RATM song before.

[Invader Zim]

Quote: from themanwill on 9:36 am on July 10, 2002
i live in the uk so we never cover american history so i found not about Che, Mumia and even Zapata from Rage. Its not sad everyone finds out their own way this is ours.


You must go to a lame school we learn loads of US history.

[synthesis]

Che is one of those things that I've always vaguely known about. Sort of like how you really can't remember the first time you've heard the 'F' word, it's been around forever.

I didn't know as much about him as I do now until I met my girlfriend, whose parents are from Cuba.

[Non-Sectarian Bastard!]

Nein, I knew Che years and years before I knew RATM

I started listening to RATM when I was 15 and I knew che already from when I was 6 or something.

I saw an image of him and asked my dad who he was and he said that he was a great man who gave his life for the communist revolution and freed cuba.

Damn I am lucky with Commie parents :biggrin: Altough they are pretty hypocryt, steal fearing the (secret) police. :biggrin:

[DayOfTheDestroyer]

No i first found out about him for time's people of the century book.

[Felicia]

Nope, I was in my global history class in grade 11 and the teacher was talking about someone and a kid in class said "oh, you mean that he was like che guevara?" and the teacher said "no, not like him"......... and that was the only reference to che guevara I've ever heard. And then in grade 12 I figured that I should probably look up some info in this che guy because I hadn't heard anything about him since. So I checked the school library for an enclyclopedia, and didn't find much there, so I went to the town library and ordered some books in about him and the cuban revolution, and then I checked around online and POOF, che-lives.com :biggrin:

I was a communist before I had any clue who che guevara was, that's how I know I'm "real", not following an apperent "trend".

[Rock1Renegade3]

Communism is a trend?

I thought only wearing Che stuff was.


I knew about Che before I knew about RATM. But RATM opened my eyes more.

[The Muckraker]

Heh. I probably first heard of Che when I was in the eighth grade and got "Alladin Sane" by Bowie. He's mentioned in the song "Panic in Detroit."

[rumblefish86]

I got my first knowledge of Che from Manic Street Preachers. There's a line in one of there songs 'revol' thats goes 'Che Guevara your all target now' and i didnt really know that much about him so i checked him out.

[chamo]

I actually first heard of RATM from this forum. True story.

I have known of Che for yeeeeeeeeears, because I liked to read my encylopedias when I was a kid, and the posters also had me intrigued. It was just a matter of time before I became a Communist through Marx, and then after a year or so I joined this place, and heard about RATM.

[Lefty]

Wow, they are all over the radios here in America, even after breaking up. Where do you live?

[Zombie]

He lives in some dark corner of Middle Earth, where the only music they get, is the sound of their own farts.

[dsmtuner]

My first knowledge of Che came from RATM.

[WUOrevolt]

got first knowledge from RATM

[redstaruser]

got it from ratm also, but now my knowledge of che has expanded to more than just music

[rAW DEaL bILL]

i learned about him when i did a book report on marx in 5th grade. he was one of "those influenced by marx" in my paper. then i kinda forgot about him till my freind sebastian did a paper on che and i stole his bio. the one by jon lee anderson. AFTER that i realised ches face was on morellos amp in the "sleep now in the fire video.

[Guest1]

I've always known about him, can't really remember how long ago. But I REALLY learned about him in my "summer of enlightenment". I had alot of time on my hands, so I read nelson mandela's "walk to freedom", 1984, a 600 page bio of che guevara, the communist manifesto and alot of other political books, in the span of two months. I had been a sorta socialist for a long time, though I never really thought about it or put it to words. Then that summer I realized my thoughts about the rediculousness of the current state of the world were shared by others. And I discovered communism. Anyways, my musical enlightenment started a few months before that, but I only discovered the more political music, like rage a bit afterwards. Oh, bob dylan was before reading about che.

(Edited by Che y Marijuana at 4:46 am on May 27, 2003)

[Dhul Fiqar]

The story on the first page of the topic about the salesman who wouldn't sell the Che patch to someone without giving them a history lesson about who he was? Fucking brilliant guy! :)

--- G.

[chamo]

Quote: from Zombie on 10:11 pm on May 16, 2003
He lives in some dark corner of Middle Earth, where the only music they get, is the sound of their own farts.


Also known as the Island of Ireland.

I knew the name "Rage Against the Machine" about 2 years ago, I was a wee commie then. But I didn't actually know they was a band. :(I loves them now though.

[Soul Rebel]

i first found out about che from family and friends. che is very much loved in spain, so i had the opportunity to learn the history of che and cuba earlier on in life. theres even a street named after him in my town. i developed an admiration for him from all the exposure i recieved about him when i was quite young. then rage came along and it felt awesome cuz i finally had found someone that knew what i knew and loved what i loved.

[Invader Zim]

I dont like RATM, It is also very sad to get ones political ideology from a bands politics. You become a sheep following a fashon created by the band. Of course bands creating political music to educate the masses is fine, but to actually become a socialist or communist because of a band is stupid.

[Soul Rebel]

Very true AK47- more than half that listen to RATM have no idea what they are talking about. They are clueless. They just like Rage "cuz they start riots man"- which i have heard many people say. Many dont know what rage is truly saying.