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anyways fuck america for not educating students about the aids crisis whatsoever

my drama teacher mentioned to us “most of my friends from college are dead” and I knew right away what he meant. he explained “I was a drama major in the 1980s” and still no one else in the class understood. he explained a little bit about the aids crisis, but these kids had no idea before. it is truly heartbreaking to hear about it, and especially to see it being erased.

kawaiiicumshot-deactivated20140

being an unattractive horny teenager is actually so hard i want to cry

whomst

Every horse movie

Sarah aynn: “no one understands me I hate you Mom for making us move out here in the middle of no where there’s not even cute boys” *runs away and finds mysterious farm* Old man wilkinson: “this right here lil lady is a hourisey if yer can tame t it’s yoires if not it’s goin back to the horse factory” Sarsjh: *walks up to horse and starts to pet its nose* “see girl? You and me aren’t so different after all” Old man wonka: “why I don’t believe it she done tamed ol’ misery I reckon she ought to sign her up for the horuse show and save the farm” *cut scene of Sarah sneaking out the house to ride her horse everyday until her mom finds out* Mom: “young lady you are GROUNDED!!!! You are not allowed to compete in the horse show” Staryah: “no Mom please” *runs away and almost gets hit by car but then the horse pushes the car out the way" Mom: “fucjkfidnb maybe that’s a good horse after all”

eqbbb

The actual accuracy

lillian-edits

𝑻𝒉𝒆 𝒘𝒐𝒓𝒍𝒅 𝒊𝒕 𝒕𝒖𝒓𝒏𝒔 𝒏𝒐 𝒎𝒂𝒕𝒕𝒆𝒓 𝒘𝒉𝒂𝒕

ams59fall2018section6-blog

Nicole Richter

“This is America” by Childish Gambino was written and produced in mid-2018. As a very recent release, the issues addressed within are fresh in the modern social and political climate. However, Gambino includes many historical allusions to convey his message about the subjectification and objectification of black citizens in America.

In recent years, between 1999 and present, there have been many instances of gun violence and abuse of the right to bear arms in the United States. Mass shootings have dramatically increased since 2012, according to The Washington Post. A recent tragedy occurred in 2015 at a historically black church in Charleston, North Carolina, where 21-year-old Dylan Roof shot 10 and murdered 9 people during prayer in the Emanuel African Methodist Episcopal Church. This hate-crime sparked a fervent desire for gun control amid the black community and throughout America (Horowitz, Corasaniti, Southall). In one section of the music video for “This is America”, Gambino sings and dances alongside a gospel choir of 10 people before viciously murdering them all with an automatic weapon as a nod to the massacre in Charleston. The gun is then transferred to a man carefully holding a red cloth, and carried away with respect.

The red cloth insinuates that appreciation and honor is given to guns in America more than the lives of innocent people. This leads to the next topic Gambino covers, which is the current police brutality crisis towards people of color in the United States. Throughout the video, while Gambino raps and dances in the foreground, police officers are running after black individuals in the background with riot gear on, their bats on full display, beating on people whom they have captured. Throughout America’s history, there have been many instances of violence between black people and police officers. One of the most notable events was the riot in Montgomery, Alabama, referred to as “Bloody Sunday” during the civil rights movement in 1965. Martin Luther King Jr. led nonviolent protesters from Selma to Montgomery in response to previous instances of police brutality in the south. Police officers of Alabama reacted very poorly to this, breaking up the crowd with questionable methods such as beatings and tear gas. This event was groundbreaking because it was heavily publicised via television recording (Stanford). Although this event occurred over 50 years ago, police brutality is still a very real and current crisis in America, which displays the subject formation of black people beneath white police officers in authority. Gambino encodes that if police “catch you slippin’ up”(Gambino), it is possible for you, as a black person, to be beaten or killed.

Towards the end of the video, while Gambino is fervently running from the police, it is up to the viewer to decode his meaning. After all of the chaos occurring throughout the music video, there is a moment of calm, where Gambino stands atop a car in an empty structure. Suddenly, the video shifts from being calm to chaotic again when Young Thug begins singing about being “just a barcode” in this world. Gambino has a terrified look on his face while sprinting through the empty structure, away from white people. The viewer can interpret this as a reference to the rampant police brutality in America.

“This is America” has become a revolutionary song in the present day because of its various meanings and historical contexts. Gambino recognizes the hatred and violence occurring in America. He addresses how the black community has been treated throughout history by using both recent and century-old historical events to emphasize his point.

Sources:

Horowitz, Jason, et al. “Nine Killed in Shooting at Black Church in Charleston.” The New York Times, The New York Times, 19 Jan. 2018, www.nytimes.com/2015/06/18/us/church-attacked-in-charleston-south-carolina.html.

“Selma to Montgomery March.” Birmingham Campaign | The Martin Luther King, Jr., Research and Education Institute, 21 Mar. 1965, kinginstitute.stanford.edu/encyclopedia/selma-montgomery-march.