Childish Gambino Sends a Message Through His New Single
Still from Glover’s music video for ‘This is America’.
May 10, 2018
Donald Glover goes viral for his controversial music video released last weekend.
Glover’s video for his song ‘This is America’ addresses several issues in the news head-on through symbolism and allusions.
While hosting Saturday Night Live this past weekend, Glover took the stage to debut his new single. After his vigorous performance, the track was released along with the official music video. The video features metaphors for various issues and left viewers with a lot to assess.
Some took the song as another bop from Glover like the rest of his music, but others looked deeper into what the video and lyrics may convey. Little things like dance moves and police cars in the video serve a deeper meaning to major issues in society. Those issues include police brutality, gun violence and how America deals with these issues.
“At first I just thought the song was another hit by him, but after checking Twitter, I realized what he really meant in the video,” said sophomore Kamryn Lane. Social media played a huge part in the virality and awareness of Glover’s song.
Turning people’s attention to the topic and just how serious it is was Glover’s intention with his video, and he did just that. Celebrities such as Adele and SZA praised the video and what all it stands for.
“He’s doing what most celebrities have been doing recently and that’s addressing unfairness towards a certain race, I feel like it’s also pointing out how America has changed into this society where all we care about is technology and violence,” said sophomore Ashton Calvert.
The messages in the videos are based on the rise of gun violence in America recently, showing multiple shootings done by Glover. He handles the guns more delicately than human lives, which is a huge statement regarding the issue.
Another message is conveyed by a man strumming the guitar, meant to portray Trayvon Martin’s father, who was fatally shot by a police officer in 2012. The man is then shot by Glover after he strikes a Jim Crow-like pose. Jim Crow laws enforced racial segregation in the late 1800’s through the Civil Rights period in Southern America.
The children dancing with Glover while the music is upbeat and happy represents the way that society masks the tragedies that take place in our country. The children are happy and full of energy despite the devastating acts being done around them.
“Watching the video made me think about the issues we have in America because it points out gun violence and how racism isn’t going away anytime soon, and that we need to change the way we act or it will all keep going downhill,” said Calvert. As if the recent violence in shootings and police brutality shouldn’t have already gotten the attention of most people, Glover’s song will turn more heads toward the topics.
The video can be viewed on Youtube at https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=VYOjWnS4cMY.
John Jiler • Dec 21, 2018 at 11:04 am
THE NOTORIOUS NINETEEN
Dear High Schol Journalist;
December is deepening, and seniors are thinking harder and harder about the next step. For many of us, your generation is the hope of the future. The Parkland high school shootings galvanized young people across the nation to passionately advocate for common sense gun laws. Now, as your attention turns to college, we want to turn our admiration into action.
With the help of the Brady Center, the new Gabby Giffords consortium, Everytown for Gun Safety and the Columbia Scholastic Press Association, we’ve reached out to high school journalists across the country with our list of the NOTORIOUS NINETEEN—the states with dangerous, inadequate gun laws. Many of them condone the open carry of weapons on college campuses; others simply turn a blind eye to the potential for gun violence in their state. Our mission has been to make these places known to high school seniors. We’re encouraging them NOT to apply to college in…
ALABAMA, ALASKA, ARIZONA, ARKANSAS, FLORIDA, GEORGIA, IDAHO, KANSAS, KENTUCKY, MISSISSIPPI, MISSOURI, MONTANA, NEW HAMPSHIRE, NORTH DAKOTA, OKLAHOMA, TEXAS, UTAH, WEST VIRGINIA, or WYOMING.
Sadly, your state is on this list. You’re no doubt very proud of the place you live, and you should be. But the gun violence epidemic in this country has taken too many lives, and things must change. You can be part of that change, by encouraging your elected officials and your families and your friends to think about some serious questions. Should teenagers be able to order AR-15s through the mail? Should people with a history of mental illness be allowed easy access to guns? If you feel the answer to these questions is “no,” we all have a lot of work to do!
Thank you for considering the publication of this letter in your newspaper. Good luck with your own decision about college, and have a safe and prosperous senior year!
Best,
John Jiler,
Coordinator,
Committee for Scholastic Action On Guns
https://sites.google.com/site/committeescholasticactionguns/home?previewAsViewer=1