Twisted Sister’s ‘We’re Not Gonna Take It’ has been a protest anthem for political campaigns and movements since its release in 1984. The song was even sung by the crowd stirred by Donald Trump during the January 6, 2021 storming of the Capitol.
Dee Snider has not been happy with how the song gained popularity among fascists, Nazis, and other ‘dangerous’ groups, though. The singer recently told Delfi, “I knew it was a great song. I knew it was a hit, an anthem, but it has taken on a life of its own, beyond me, my band, and heavy metal. It’s become a folk song. The world knows this song. As a young man, I sang it as a rebellion against the world – against my parents, teachers, bosses, friends, the record label – that’s what I made it about. Now, it belongs to everyone.”
“It’s a song played at sports events,” he continued. “I saw 300,000 Indians singing ‘We’re Not Gonna Take It’ in a stadium. It was unbelievable. I’ve seen it at protests, on teachers’ strikes, union picket lines. And I’ve seen fascists use it. I didn’t expect that, and I didn’t want that. But I can’t stop them from singing it – that’s freedom of speech. I wrote it for everyone.”
“Rolling Stone once criticized it, asking, ‘We’re Not Gonna Take It – take what from whom?’ It was a bad review. I explained that the idea is that the song is for anyone who’s angry about something. I never imagined Nazis singing it. I never imagined dangerous, violent people singing it when storming the Capitol on January 6. I didn’t see that coming. But I can’t stop them. All I can do is distance myself and say I don’t support certain political groups – that’s all.”
In recent years, Snider tried to prevent certain groups from using ‘We’re Not Gonna Take It’ for their own agendas. He objected when antimaskers used the song to defy government restrictions during the pandemic and previously told politicians he did not agree with, like Paul Ryan and Donald Trump, to stop using the song at their rallies.
He once wrote on X about his strong feelings about the track, “Attention: I wrote ‘We’re Not Gonna Take It’ to lift up the downtrodden. Not inspire the oppressors. F*ck anyone who cares only about what they want and not the greater good. ‘We’re Not Gonna Take It’ is not your song. It never was, and it never will be!”
‘We’re Not Gonna Take It’ was a major hit when it came out. It earned Gold certification in the U.S., went 8x Platinum in Canada, and earned another Gold in Sweden, but also stirred controversy when the PMRC pushed for its ban, claiming it promoted violence against parents.