User:Bdb484/Raider Nation

Raider Nation is the unofficial name for the Oakland Raiders fan base in general, and for fans in the "Black Hole" section of the Oakland Coliseum in particular.

Origins
The rise of Raider Nation has been attributed to GM Al Davis's commitment to "just win, baby," a philosphy that allowed the team to bring in players with checkered pasts and "off-the-field baggage," giving the team a rougher image that drew in a rougher, rowdier crowd. http://www.sptimes.com/2003/01/25/Bucs/Raider_nation.shtml Davis's style and the team's aggressive style in the '70s gave the Raiders a reputation outside the city for dirty play that would foster an "us versus them" mentality among fans that inflamed passions and heightened the fans' loyalty.

Raider Nation today is, in part, a product of the franchise's storied history. Under the directive of owner Al Davis' commitment to "Just Win Baby," the Raiders never have been afraid to take chances on players with off-the-field baggage. That philosophy helped create a certain image for Raider fans and helped draw certain types of fans to the Raiders.

As the franchise rose to prominence in the '70s and '80s, that Raider mystique blossomed and the team's Silver and Black colors, mostly black, became symbols of the dark side of the NFL. Players like Art Shell, Jack Tatum, Lyle Alzado, John Matuszak, Willie Brown and Howie Long played with a ferocity that endorsed the growing us-against-the-world feeling among the franchise and its fans.

"You never hear someone say, 'I'm kinda a Raider fan,' " said John Madden, a former coach of the Raiders and now analyst for ABC's Monday Night Football. "It's either all the way, with great passion being a fan, or it's nothing. That's what being a Raider fan is."

Today that fan base is as talked about as the Raiders themselves. Images and stories from the Oakland Coliseum, and particularly a section known as the Black Hole, paint a disturbing picture.

The origin of the name is obscure but it was en vogue during the early 1980s, when the franchise's move forced fans from the Bay Area to travel to Los Angeles to watch their team. The term "nation" to describe the team’s following derives in large part to the sheer magnitude of its numbers. Former Raider Rickey Dudley, quoted in the St. Petersburg Times, stated, “It's amazing. Although you go to a lot of places and there are fans there from everywhere, I'll have to say that in my years I don't think I have ever seen fans like that. They follow you to the cities and to the hotels. You get there and the lobbies are full of Raider fans. You know why they call it the Raider Nation? Because it's nationwide. Miami, New York, wherever. You're part of the Raider Nation. It's so large. They say Dallas is America's Team, well, I'm not so sure about that. The Raiders are beloved." Another former Raider, Randy Jordan, agreed: "It's not Raider Club. It's not Raider Fans. It's Raider Nation. Wherever you go, you will find more than just a few fans. There's never one Raider, they come in droves.”

Denver Post staff writer Bill Briggs (and no lover of the Raiders), in a 2005 article wrote, “The Raiders may be the second-most popular team in Denver, as they are in other National Football League cities. Nationally, Raiders gear outsold other teams' jerseys three out of the past four years, according to the NFL.” (The latter point is not lost on Raiders’ majority owner Al Davis, who rues the fact that NFL teams share equally in profits from merchandise sold.)

There are many theories as to what created Raider Nation. Some point to the working-class, multi-racial nature of the city of Oakland. Others give a nod to the us-against-the-world attitude spawned by “outlaw” owner Davis. Still others talk about the team’s aggressive, combative (detractors would say “dirty”) style of play during the 1970s and 1980s, when the Raiders won their three Super Bowls, embodied by players nicknamed “The Assassin” (Jack Tatum), “Doctor Death” (Skip Thomas), "Snake" (Ken Stabler) and “The Mad Stork” (Ted Hendricks). (Chuck Noll, former coach of the Pittsburgh Steelers football team, once described the Raider defensive backs as a "criminal element.")

Hunter S. Thompson, a Raider fan in the last years of his life, wrote, "The massive Raider Nation is beyond doubt the sleaziest and rudest and most sinister mob of thugs and wackos ever assembled."

Raider Nation has been the subject of a documentary entitled, A Look Into The World of the Most Notorious Fans on the Planet: "The Raider Nation,”currently for sale on DVD. In its review, Amazon.com states: “A cross between an English soccer match and a Halloween ball, an Oakland Raiders game is uniquely singular. From tailgate parties that start three days before the game, to legendary fanaticism both inside and outside of the stadium, the Raider Nation is a people worth exploring.”

The team's fans utter devotion is chronicled in "Better to Reign in Hell," a book written by San Diego English professors Jim Miller and Kelly Mayhew, who are also Raider fans. The title is derived from an assertion by Satan in Paradise Lost by John Milton: "Better to reign in Hell than serve in Heaven."

The term "Raider Nation," with "Nation" serving to describe the team's numerous followers, has inspired many imitations, the most notable being perhaps the so-called "Red Sox Nation." Even the Borland software company, having been started by Raider fans, refers to its employees and culture as the "Borland Nation."

Raider Nation has also shown its passion for participating in the democracy of U.S. politics. During the 2008 Presidential campaign, some Raider fans started their own page on the Web site of Barack Obama and Joe Biden and hosted 148 events while raising more than $18,000. In an opinion piece, similarities between Raider Nation and Obama supporters were addressed in The Astute Recorder, where author Michael Leon Guerrero says, "They (the Oakland Raiders) once had a proud tradition of being the home of the cast-offs and has-beens of the NFL, and making them winners. The Obama campaign has done the same for those who have been historically disillusioned or shut out from politics."