International Day of Slayer : News : IDOS team launches H.A.I.L. to continue metal legacy
IDOS team launches H.A.I.L. to continue metal legacy
After the tragic death of Jeff Hanneman, the International Day of Slayer (IDOS) team got together and decided where we would go to continue his legacy. His is a great spirit, and his contributions massive, so a web page isn't enough, and a holiday dedicated to Slayer may not be enough. We decided to go further.
Hanneman lived metal. Not only did he live the music, and the lifestyle, but he lived the spirit. In his work and his life, a common thread ran through everything that showed he did not take life at face value, did not trust society and certainly wasn't going to let other people define his life by calling some things "good" and some things "bad."
By thinking outside the box of socially-ingrained views of reality, he tapped into a vast world that the imagination tells us is more real than the granular and detail-oriented "facts" that come through the television. In his fertile mind, occult forces battled for the future of our world, which seems to be more the truth than the "we've got it under control" we read in our newspapers.
In this respect, and in every other, Jeff Hanneman is the prototypical Hessian (headbanger; metalhead; metal fan; metal lifer) of tomorrow: he saw the truth in a reality outside of society, and he found strength in that bigger reality than what he was offered. Acting on this, he went his own way and did more than these people thought he was capable of doing.
Because of those singularly inspiring acts, he inspired us to form a new society, called H.A.I.L. That stands for the Hessian Association for Identity Legislation, which is a group to get people like Jeff Hanneman recognized as a culture of their own. The metal culture. Read our mission statement below, and see if you think we're onto something.
Many different cultures make up a democratic society. Each of these cultures is viewed as simultaneously valid, and is protected and understood on its own terms. Every culture, that is, except one.
Some people may not see heavy metal as a culture. They might think of it as just music that people buy. Music has values however, and those who find meaning in these values become an "elective culture," much like those inspired by works of great literature or recently constructed religions.
Our society currently does not recognize heavy metal as being the basis of one of these elective cultures because our society does not understand heavy metal, its values and how those indicate a cultural choice. As a result, it discriminates against people of the metal culture, called "Hessians," by systematically excluding them from opportunity.
In order to prevent this travesty, the Hessian Association for Identity Legislation (HAIL) acts to educate people in the civil rights of Hessians, the Hessian culture, and the importance of respect for other cultures in the functioning of pluralism itself. Our goal is to make heavy metal cultural members as accepted as members of any other minority ethnic, religious or cultural group.
This movement is a political one designed to change our society to end the systematic discrimination against Hessians on one hand, and to introduce people to the vast opportunities afforded by including Hessians, who are some of the most creative and spirited people in society, among their activities.
HAIL is a 501(c)(3) application pending non-profit group whose mission is to (1) raise awareness of the rights of Hessians; (2) educate the world in Hessian culture; (3) archive, study and publish analyses of Hessian cultural artifacts; and (4) work to incorporate Hessians into productive roles in our society through diversity programs.
Visit H.A.I.L. at www.hailmetal.org. See you there.