Rap - Today's Civil Rights Movement

The civil war was the first defining point in American history where people questioned the calling of other human beings property. It was made a point that all human beings no matter skin color should be free. Yet after the civil war the rights of blacks were still below the standard. It wasn’t until the civil rights movement that the question of what rights blacks truly had in the United States was addressed. Such leaders as Martin Luther King Jr., Malcom X, and others brought the attention of this nation on how blacks were being treated in this country where people are supposed to be free and equal.

Those leaders however are gone, but it is hard to say that their work is finished. So who is leading the civil rights movement in today’s world? One article written by Scott Simon would suggest that the world of Rap/Hip Hop is where the civil rights movement of today can be found. He mentions that this style of music is the first that didn’t have to be changed to fit into a white enterprise. This is in fact the first style that stayed original to its form created by blacks. It is in the fact that the style did not have to integrate but keep its true to its roots is the reason that it is the current form of the civil rights movement. This video actually shows a rap (although it is rather old) that is literally speaking on civil rights. It is in the video that the idea of civil rights being promoted by rap/hip hop can be seen.