The identity of the alleged gunman who killed six people in a Sikh gurdwara in Wisconsin on Sunday was revealed to be Wade Michael Page. As it turns out Page, who was shot dead by the police at the scene, was the frontman for a hatecore band called End Apathy, who were signed to Label 56, Baltimore’s white power record label.
Yesterday Label 56 released an official statement saying they were “very sorry to hear about the tragedy” and that they “have worked hard over the years to promote a positive image” (whatever that means). They also claim never to have “sought attention by using ‘shock value.’” They also mentioned that they’ve scrubbed their website clean of all references to End Apathy because they “do not wish to profit from this tragedy.”
But you know, there’s no reason for them to stop selling the Bully Boys’ White Kids Gonna Fight record, or their Children of the Reich CDs, or that record with the crude drawing of a dark-skinned man with corn rows and a monstrous face choking a cop, or that one Armed & Ready record (the one with the loaded revolver) — I mean these are positive images here! Or anyway, Children of the Reich haven’t actually murdered anyone yet, so whatever.
Why is Label 56 suddenly getting so sheepish? I mean aren’t Page’s alleged actions nothing more than the logical conclusion of the aggressive hate that Label 56 has been pushing for years now?
