The punk scene loudly promotes inclusivity. All are welcome, regardless of your age, race, religion, gender identity, or socioeconomic status, as long as you hate Donald Trump. But there is still a small cross-section of punk shows that can occasionally be openly hostile to female participants: the mosh pit. One man, Logan Hughes, seeks to single-handedly close the moshing gender gap with his actions. We insisted he speak with us after we saw him push several unsuspecting young women into the pit during a show.
The Hard Times: What the fuck was that about, man? Why would you do that?
Logan: I’m trying to encourage these women to participate in male-dominated punk spaces. That circle pit was an unwelcoming boys’ club until I stepped in to help.
HT: Is this a male-feminist thing you’re doing here?
Logan: Nobody ever changed the world by watching from the sidelines.
HT: But the woman you shoved was already moshing the entire night. She had stopped for 5 seconds to pick up someone who fell, but you shoved her away and that guy ended up getting trampled instead. He’s bleeding! How was this helpful to either of them?
Logan: Listen, it’s my duty as an ally to do whatever it takes to make sure women at punk shows have access to the same moshing opportunities as you or me. I don’t see you out here doing anything to help.
HT: Isn’t there some other way to accomplish that?
Logan: Of course. Being an ally can be as basic as supporting and encouraging the women in your life. Give them that small push, sometimes literally, to join a group they might not perceive as welcoming. But other times, it takes more effort to get to those marginalized women on the edge of the pit and show your support.
HT: And what might that involve?
Logan: Just getting in there and doing the work at every show to promote inclusivity. I slam into them with my best spin kicks and windmill my fists around to show that I think they’re just as worthy as a man to receive a crowdkilling. I don’t discriminate in the pit. If anything, I award preferential crowdkilling opportunities to the women I encounter on the edge of the pit
HT: Yeah, you’ve made that clear tonight. But there’s some risk involved in moshing, shouldn’t it be a personal choice to participate? Some people want to observe for a bit to gauge the energy before jumping in.
Logan: If I waited for them to willingly…excuse me, who are you?
At this point, we were approached by venue security to discuss another concertgoer’s accusation that Logan had groped her while she was crowd surfing. In light of this news, and in the interest of professionalism, we decided to wrap up our interview early and punch Logan hard in the stomach on our way out. We were unable to determine what else Logan does to help ensure women have equal access to punk spaces.