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After leaving the white power skinhead movement he helped build, Christian Picciolini graduated from DePaul University and became a respected entrepreneur. He executive-produced America’s second-longest running music television program and launched Goldmill Group, a global entertainment firm. Most importantly, in 2010 he co-founded the peace advocacy nonprofit Life After Hate. In 2015, he published his memoirs, Romantic Violence: Memoirs of an American Skinhead.
Reviewed by Heather Osborne for Readers' Favorite
Romantic Violence: Memoirs of an American Skinhead by Christian Picciolini chronicles the author’s experiences growing up in Blue Island, a working class neighborhood in Chicago during the 1980s-1990s. Christian’s life as the son of first generation Italian immigrants is difficult, and he often finds himself left to the care of his grandparents. Not really fitting in anywhere, Christian discovers the world of neo-Nazism through a man named Clark Martell. He swiftly rises through the ranks, displacing the anger and hurt he felt through his absent parents onto the so-called “inferior” races of his blue collar neighborhood. A musician, leader, and criminal, Picciolini finds himself questioning his beliefs after the birth of his sons and the breakdown of his first marriage, and wonders if his convictions are worth the cost of losing his family.
I will admit, I had my reservations going into reading this memoir, yet curiosity got the better of me. I simply could not put this book down. I sat and read from start to finish, captivated by the engaging writing style and candid confessions of Mr. Picciolini. It certainly could not have been easy to bare his soul in such a way, knowing he may face repercussions from the community in which he had once been so engrained. In truth, I admire him greatly, not only for recognizing that he had been misled, but understanding the cause for his displaced hatred. Although the earlier chapters of the book jump around a bit, the narrative was easy to follow, candid and compelling. Romantic Violence: Memoirs of an American Skinhead by Christian Picciolini truly opened my eyes to how some racially violent organizations prey on the vulnerabilities of youth in order to sway them from more ethical and moral paths. I only wish I had the ability to rank this higher than five stars. It certainly isn’t a read for everyone, but to those that do take the opportunity, they will not be disappointed.
