Benjamin Herrera
Professor Graves
English 2150
March 06, 2019
An Analysis of Civil Unrest Through Cultural Works
In this paper, I will be analyzing two pieces of cultural media that address the topic of civil unrest. The first is the song by Public Enemy, “Fight the Power”, and the second is the “We the People” illustration, used as the representative image of the Women’s March. I will be comparing and contrasting their similarities and differences. While they are both symbols of civil unrest, “Fight the Power” was made in 1989 and is primarily made in reference to racial injustice. On the other hand, the “We the People” illustration is a contemporary piece of art and is primarily referring to gender inequality and resistance to the Trump administration. I will be detailing what these two pieces have in common, how they are reflective of the times we are living in, as well as their impact on society. These texts both talk about social injustice with regards to marginalized groups, however with one through the lens of inclusivity and the other through the lens of militant resistance.
The “We the People” illustration is of a woman wearing a hijab, which is decorated as the American flag. The woman in the portrait is Munira Ahmed, who states that the message of the painting is that she, as a muslim woman, is just as American as anyone else. This statement is made in the context of Trump’s attempted ban on all Muslims from entering the U.S, as well as an environment of high anti-Islamic attitudes in the U.S since 9/11. This is why it is shown that her hijab is decorated like the American flag, merging a symbol of Islamic culture with a symbol of American culture. The image is a rejection of anti-immigrant sentiment and sentiments against multi-culturalism. It embraces pluralism and is a symbol of taking pride in American diversity. It is a strong statement against those in our country that try to paint a picture of the west and the muslim world of being at odds, forgetting that there are many Muslims in our own country. This image represents the people who reject the anti-Muslim attitudes in our country and embrace Muslim-Americans as being equally American as every other American. This strong image of the American flag being used as a hijab sends a powerful reminder that freedom of religion is one of the founding principles of our country, and muslims are included in that. It equally shows that Muslims believe in American principles, such as freedom of religion. It is also particularly pertinent that this image is being used by the Women’s March. The Women’s March was a massive worldwide protest organized in response to statements made by President Trump, perceived by many to be mysoginistic and offensive. The Women’s March is the epitome of an example of civil unrest as it involved the largest civil protest in U.S history advocating for policies that would promote women’s rights, reproduction right, immigration reform, etc.
My other example of a cultural piece that reflects the civil unrest in our society is the song by Public Enemy, “Fight the Power.” Although this song was released in 1990, the themes touched on upon are still very relevant to this day. The major theme in the song is that African-Americans need to take a more militant approach against institutional racism in order for the status quo to be changed. In the song it says “Our Freedom of Speech is Freedom or Death. We got to fight the powers that be.” This is a rallying call for those in the African-American community to take their liberation into their own hands by identifying the issues in their communities, coming together, and then organizing to counter the system that has caused those problems. In addition to this, there are many references in the song towards Malcolm X and Black pride, which are inspirations from which this song draws upon (and still influence activist groups today). The title of the song itself is very provocative, and suggests something revolutionary. Public Enemy also touches on the fact that society is unfair towards African-Americans since they do not have the same opportunities provided to them that white America does. In addition to this, the song was made by Public Enemy at the request of Spike Lee for his movie Do the Right Thing, a film that touches on racial issues in America. The song is played prominently throughout the movie, which comments on the racial tension in America. The song is still relevant to this day because these same issues that Public Enemy is talking about are still being tackled by society. This can be seen from the emergence of the Black Lives Matter movement, which protests the unfair treatment of African-Americans at the hands of law enforcement. The same civil unrest is occurring due to these injustices and inequalities between the races.
Another reason that I chose to compare these two pieces of cultural art is because, while they have a lot in common, they also represent two different schools of thought when it comes to civil unrest. The “We the America” illustration promotes unity and all Americans coming together peacefully to show solidarity and demonstrate their grievances with the status quo. This is why I believe that it reflects the peaceful ideology of Dr. Martin Luther King. On the other hand, “Fight the Power” reflects the militant ideology of Malcolm X when it comes to resisting oppression. This can be seen as the song places a large emphasis on Black empowerment and a militant demand of their rights, rather than a collective peaceful call for all Americans to gather together to stand up for their rights. The conflict and conversation between these competing modes of resisting oppression has a long history in the United States. This is even referenced in “Fight the Power.” In the first verse of the song, it makes a subtle yet powerful reference to this when it says, “Singing while I’m Swinging. Giving whatcha Getting.” This is referencing Malcolm X’s famous speech “Ballot or the Bullet”, in which he criticizes the more peaceful approach to resisting oppression. In the speech, Malcolm X says specifically “Today it’s time to stop singing and start swinging.” The “singing” Malcolm X is talking about references the singing of songs like “We Shall Overcome” that Martin Luther King and his supporters would sing at protests.During the Civil Rights Movement in the 1950’s and 1960’s, some of the prominent organizations that reflected a more peaceful approach included the Student Nonviolent Coordinating Commitee (SNCC) and the Southern Christian Leadership Conference (SCLC). The Black Panther Party, on the other hand was a militant group that was created to arm and protect Black citizens in Oakland, California from police brutality. These groups competed for influence over how African-Americans and others involved in the Civil Rights Movement would go about achieving racial equality. In fact, this theme of “Malcolm vs. Martin” is a central theme in Do the Right Thing, (the movie for which “Fight the Power” was created) where different characters hold one of these two ideologies. At the end of the film, these differing philosophies play a direct cause in creating total civil unrest. These two pieces of art still characterize two dominant schools of thought to resisting oppression that are used by civil rights activists to this day.
These two art pieces work in tandem to talk about the issue of gender and racial inequality. Both pieces broadly talk about dissatisfied social groups. In the “We the People” illustration, it is talking about gender inequality and islamophobia, and in “Fight the Power”, it is talking about racism. What these pieces have in common is that they are connected to the larger theme of civil unrest. They convey that when things are not fair for social groups, that it causes social unrest. The “We the People” illustration is not just an illustration. It is representative of the discrimination against women, dissatsfaction with President Trump (and his comments), and islamophobia. It is representative of the estimated four million people who showed up to the women’s march to protest. “Fight the Power” is connected to Black pride and to the larger issue of structural racism. All of these issues when left unaddressed will lead to civil unrest. The civil unrest does not come out of a vaccuum. According to the data, President Trump has a 55% unfavorable rating from the American public. Many in the country believe that he stands for something ugly and repressive to these social groups, which is why it causes the civil unrest.
In conclusion, these two cultural pieces address the topic of civil unrest, with relation to structural sexism and racism, through two different lenses. The “We the People” illustration comes from the peaceful and inclusive Martin Luther King school of thought when it comes to resisting systemic oppression. On the other hand, “Fight the Power”, comes from the proud, militant Malcolm X school of thought. They are a good representation of the current zeitgeist of our era, in which the topics of racial and gender inequality, islamophobia, and Trump are prominent discourses in society. It is even more of a representation of our era when it is noted that these issues cause people to take social action.