Before fully divulging myself in the topic, let me provide some disclosure. I've been a fan of Lupe Fiasco's work dating back to his mixtape days before he released his debut album, "Food and Liquor." He has earned a cult following by artfully manipulating the English language in a way that is aesthetically pleasing and intellectually engaging while communicating pertinent and relatable themes. In other words, I'm a biased fanboy who proudly stood in the front row at one of his concerts rapping all the words to his songs right back at him.
As a Muslim-American poet and a wordsmith, his lyrical midi-clorians are off the scale, and while he's driven towards good, his Machiavellian means may be considered sithly. Concerned less about logistics and political goals and leaning more towards lighting an inspirational fire deep in the hearts of his audience to push them towards personal enlightenment, Lu is a staunch advocate for peace and social engagement. Yet despite his potential power, he encourages self-actualization and avoids explicitly exerting control over his followers.
While in the past he has been much more subtle with his political overtones, Lu elects to go on the record with his single "Words I Never Said." Fed up with the status quo and determined to empower the voices of the silenced, the lyrics combine with stunning visuals in the music video to proclaim an anti-establishment, pro-peace position. Alluding to brainwashing by the popular media, a power-structure that intentionally stifles upward mobility, the American tendency to medicate the symptoms and not the problem, and the use of fear as a means of control, Lupe accurately diagnosis many of the issues that plague our world; he's lost hope in traditional means of change, and sees an uprising from the people as the only way to overcome the systemic corruption. While an underground rebellion against Big Brother may be a great narrative, something tells me that change in America will not follow the Egyptian model. Ultimately, Lupe delivers a call to arms without a clear strategy, objective, or even enemy, which ironically sounds a lot like American Imperialism and the wars he's protesting.
This rebel-with-a-cause-but-no-substantial-cure may indicate that Lu believes that a grassroots solution originating from the ground is the only viable alternative. Thus, his role is that of a motivator, an instigator, and a beacon to rally around. During his appearance on the Colbert Report, he emphasized holding authority accountable and engaging in active analysis of politicians even if you support them. This is an issue that many progressives have been struggling over: is it ok to criticize a Democratic President in hopes of pulling him further to the left, or will the lack of solidarity within the party create a dangerous political fallout that could jeopardizes Barack's re-election?
As a fellow black man from Chicago, the conventional wisdom says that Lupe should be a strong advocate for Obama, and that's partially true. Lu supports campaign-Obama who promised both progressive change and government transparency to allow for active criticism by watchdogs who keep the government honest. However, on the issue of utmost concern to Lupe Fiasco, Obama has failed to bring peace to the Middle East and has continued many of the Bush policies by extending the Patriot Act, failing to close Guantanamo, and keeping troops in Iraq and Afghanistan. Hence, it is no surprise that a peaceful Muslim who constantly denounces violence and the actions by radicals acting in the name of Islam would speak out against the absence of foreign policy changes for the region.
"In my fight against terrorism, to me, the biggest terrorist is Obama in the United States of America. For me, I’m trying to fight the terrorism that’s actually causing the other forms of terrorism. The root cause of the terrorism is the stuff that you as a government allow to happen and the foreign policies that we have in place in different countries that inspire people to become terrorists."
Is Obama the cause of Terrorism? No, but is he the change he promised to be during his '08 campaign? No. He's a constitutional law professor playin' politics by the books and appeasing a multitude of players. Pragmatists rarely lead revolutions, especially not during their first term.
Is Barack patiently piecing together policies for incremental change because he believes that any radical plans would fracture the stability of the nation and create a backlash that would allow Republicans the political power to repeal his legislation? Is he setting the stage for his re-election? Is he doing what's best for the nation, or his family? We've all speculated, and we all have our own theories, but at a time when the political headlines read like the tabloid coverage of Jersey Shore, Lupe reminds us about the costs of war and where our priorities should be.
I support accountability and critical engagement through reasonable means, but it's hard to tell whether he's pulling a Colbert and playing a extreme character or being sincere. He may feel that the only way to captivate and engage this A.D.D. generation is through Orwellian imagery which feels more like Science Fiction than political activism. This might be a ploy to create a symbol and a movement that the youth can believe in and call their own, or it may just be the views of an artist proudly expressing his 1st amendment rights. Either way, while its engaging for some, others will view calling President Obama a terrorist as a repulsive abuse of rhetoric to garner additional media attention.
Just like Obama's intentions, all we can do at this time is speculate and ask questions, but at the very least, we're engaged and building the critical-thinking skills needed to navigate this elusive domain.
Even if I don't agree with everything he stands for, it doesn't mean we can't celebrate our shared interests and discuss our differences. Challenging the conventional wisdom is how we rise above. Let me close with something that speaks for itself: Lupe's Lasers Manifesto.
TO EVERY MAN, WOMAN & CHILD,
WE WANT AN END TO THE GLAMORIZATION OF NEGATIVITY IN THE MEDIA
WE WANT AN END TO STATUS SYMBOLS DICTATING OUR WORTH AS INDIVIDUALS
WE WANT A MEANINGFUL AND UNIVERSAL EDUCATION SYSTEM
WE WANT SUBSTANCE IN THE PLACE OF POPULARITY
WE WILL NOT COMPROMISE WHO WE ARE TO BE ACCEPTED BY THE CROWD
WE WANT THE INVISIBLE WALLS THAT SEPARATE BY WEALTH, RACE & CLASS TO BE TORN DOWN
WE WANT TO THINK OUR OWN THOUGHTS| WE WILL BE RESPONSIBLE FOR OUR ENVIRONMENT
WE WANT CLARITY & TRUTH FROM OUR ELECTED OFFICIALS OR THEY SHOULD MOVE ASIDE
WE WANT LOVE NOT LIES| WE WANT AN END TO ALL WARS FOREIGN & DOMESTIC VIOLENCE
WE WANT AN END TO THE PROCESSED CULTURE OF EXPLOITATION, OVER-CONSUMPTION & WASTE
WE WANT KNOWLEDGE, UNDERSTANDING & PEACE
WE WILL NOT LOSE BECAUSE WE ARE NOT LOSERS, WE ARE LASERS!
LASERS ARE THE OPPOSITE OF LOSERS
LASERS ARE SHINING BEAMS OF LIGHT THAT BURN THROUGH THE DARKNESS OF IGNORANCE
LASERS SHED LIGHT ON INJUSTICE AND INEQUALITY
LOSERS STAND BY AND LET THINGS HAPPEN
LASERS ACT AND SHAPE THEIR OWN DESTINIES
LASERS FIND MEANING AND DIRECTION IN THE MYSTERIES ALL AROUND THEM
LASERS STAND FOR LOVE AND COMPASSION
LASERS STAND FOR PEACE
LASERS STAND FOR PROGRESSION
LASERS ARE REVOLUTIONARY
LASERS ARE THE FUTURE
Love Always Shines Everytime Remember 2 Smile - LF
"It's so loud inside my head with words that I should have said. As I drown in my regrets, I can't take back the words I never said."
