Final image from the Juggalo march pic.twitter.com/1RCdprRaMM
— Paul McLeod (@pdmcleod) September 16, 2017
In 2011, the FBI classified Juggalos (fans of the horrorcore rap group Insane Clown Posse) as a “loosely organized hybrid gang,” which would be hilarious if it didn’t also lead to discrimination against a group of fans who just seem like friendly oddballs. (If you haven’t seen Whoop Dreams yet, go watch it for free.) The designation as a gang means Juggalos could conceivably be fired, kicked out of the military, banned from going near their own kid’s school, and given longer sentences for minor crimes. Until very recently, California penal system inmates in a gang could be placed in unlimited solitary confinement.
The Insane Clown Posse and the ACLU sued the Department of Justice in 2014 to get that designation changed, but they haven’t succeeded yet. Hence the Juggalo March on Washington at the National Mall in Washington D.C. last Saturday.
We already covered interesting and funny early moments of the event on Saturday, and now we look back on all of the amusing and peaceful hijinks those who are down with the clown were up to this weekend.
Before the march started, many of us were wondering if the Juggalos would clash with the Trump supporters at the coinciding event at the National Mall: the MOAR, which means either “Mother Of All Rallies” or “Mostly Online And Russian” depending on who you ask. The latter may prove more accurate, as the turnout for MOAR was a bit sparse while the Juggalo rally seemed boisterous and especially positive, with the Toronto Star‘s Daniel Dale saying it was, “definitely the first protest where I’ve said I’m a reporter and people have tried to hug me.” (FAM-I-LY!)
To find out just how large the crowd was, we go to our special correspondent Sean-y 2 Dope:
https://twitter.com/jbillinson/status/909145669075599361
Thanks, Sean.
These two videos also give a sense of the crowd size:
https://twitter.com/JackSmithIV/status/909172009933967360
https://twitter.com/SocMalpractice/status/909165988830220288
Some of the protesters had funny signs with slogans like “Make America WHOOP Again,” “I wish my cat was here,” and “Your local pizza guy is not a gang member just because he is down with the clown.” And, of course, the famous line from “Miracles” — “F*ckin’ magnets, how do they work?” — got repurposed:
https://twitter.com/samknight1/status/909117480311885824
https://twitter.com/BadgeofShame/status/909183553702961152
It's all happening pic.twitter.com/Mc1S47aQIX
— Daniel Dale (@ddale8) September 16, 2017
https://twitter.com/samknight1/status/909110043043418112
https://twitter.com/StreetFightWCRS/status/909118573091713027
The Democratic Socialists of America are here handing out Juggalo-friendly snacks pic.twitter.com/h2kap5gkuB
— Daniel Dale (@ddale8) September 16, 2017
Juggalo Jared Baxter, 17, drove a day from Missouri. "People don't understand what's different." pic.twitter.com/Z70RsdBAll
— Daniel Dale (@ddale8) September 16, 2017
Violent J and Shaggy Two Dope have taken the stage. #JuggaloMarch "there's a fed watching you right now." pic.twitter.com/raYSv0KdTe
— Isaac Windes 🌊 (@isaacdwindes) September 16, 2017
Jeff Feken, 33, of Virginia Beach pic.twitter.com/nlkLvQnj1A
— Daniel Dale (@ddale8) September 16, 2017
Best sign seen so far. pic.twitter.com/HV6N0GIIoU
— Paul McLeod (@pdmcleod) September 16, 2017
And some of the protesters also took a strong stance on the issue of “Should this dog be allowed to be this cute?”
Juggalos are cursing out this dog. "Stop being so cute, motherfucker!" pic.twitter.com/NcapqMKC5U
— Daniel Dale (@ddale8) September 16, 2017
Daniel Dale took notes on what the official speakers said and how the crowd reacted. If you didn’t know, Juggalos are the best at call and response.
First speaker: Juggalos don't care if people are white, gay, black, trans, "fat as fuck" – "we're different, not dangerous."
— Daniel Dale (@ddale8) September 16, 2017
Speaker: The gang classification is "based on shockingly little facts or precedent."
Juggalos chant: "They fucked up! They fucked up!"
— Daniel Dale (@ddale8) September 16, 2017
Juggalo speaker warns Justin Bieber fans that they could be next. Juggalos chant: "Bie-ber! Bie-ber!" This is amazing
— Daniel Dale (@ddale8) September 16, 2017
Next speaker says her Air Force commanders let her keep her Juggalo tattoo but told her she couldn't associate with other "gang" members.
— Daniel Dale (@ddale8) September 16, 2017
Next Juggalo speaker says her local police gang task force entered her into a gang database, prohibited her from school grounds.
— Daniel Dale (@ddale8) September 16, 2017
"Are we a fucking gang?" "Hello no!" "I'm a taxpayer! "Your music could be next!" "Whoop whoooop!"
— Daniel Dale (@ddale8) September 16, 2017
The Juggalos give a big "whoop whoop" to "hating Confederate monuments."
— Daniel Dale (@ddale8) September 16, 2017
Even the Insane Clown Posse front men Violent J and Shaggy 2 Dope dropped some deep thoughts on the crowd.
Violent J says criminalizing opinion is like sewing a man's butthole shut. "Do you want to sew a man's butthole shut?" Juggalos: "Noooo!"
— Daniel Dale (@ddale8) September 16, 2017
Shaggy 2 Dope delivers a plea for total inclusion: "If a ninja has a soul, then a ninja matters immensely." Then he mentions buttholes.
— Daniel Dale (@ddale8) September 16, 2017
Violent J says the Juggalos should be so proud today they should perform auto-fellatio under the "governmently-fine landscaped maple trees."
— Daniel Dale (@ddale8) September 16, 2017
It wasn’t all talk of buttholes, of course (unfortunately?). Violent J also addressed the crowd, saying, “A lot of people don’t want discrimination in this country anymore, man. They don’t want bullsh*t racism, they don’t want hate, that sh*t’s played out and ancient. So we’re standing for a lot more than our problem at hand, because like I said if they get away with this, if they roll right over us, where exactly does it f*ckin’ stop?”
And many people noted how friendly the crowd was being:
https://twitter.com/SocMalpractice/status/909191598055071744
https://twitter.com/SocMalpractice/status/909175060807716864
"America is a country of weirdos. Celebrate it," shouts Juggalo Jacob Roman, 18, before aggressively giving me a hug pic.twitter.com/R0uoalL1WC
— Daniel Dale (@ddale8) September 16, 2017
Iraq vet Travis King: "The government that I helped to fund and support is calling me a gang member because of a genre of music we love." pic.twitter.com/wugZmyf5DD
— Daniel Dale (@ddale8) September 16, 2017
After the unbelievable number of "whoop whoops," the most popular Juggalo March chant is "family." Followed by "fuck that shit."
— Daniel Dale (@ddale8) September 16, 2017
But the Juggalos did show some ire for one group: the FBI who designated them a gang:
https://twitter.com/JackSmithIV/status/909143900442562560
https://twitter.com/SocMalpractice/status/909123694844399616
No love for the feds at the #JuggaloMarch in Washington DC today. pic.twitter.com/ThstCj10E0
— Ash J (@AshAgony) September 16, 2017
https://twitter.com/blanketboat/status/909130272712675329
Some people found the whole thing confusing:
Trailer in 2005:
NARRATOR: It's 2017, and Insane Clown Posse are having better PR than "President" Donald Trump.
Audience: WTF is this?
— Charlotte Clymer 🇺🇦 (@cmclymer) September 16, 2017
But we learned new things:
It warms my heart to see how #juggalo twitter is uniting us. pic.twitter.com/D5UQh1Glvr
— Sarah Thyre (@SarahThyre) September 16, 2017
Truly, we are all clowns:
Jugalette Laura King calls for solidarity from non-fans. "Today," she concludes, "we are all clowns."
— Daniel Dale (@ddale8) September 16, 2017
(Special thanks to Daniel Dale, Sean J Patrick Carney, Jack Smith IV, Sam Knight, and Inverse, and R.I.P. Ass Dan.)