Beto
Hoyos
Dr.
Steph Brown
ENG
306
9/29/16
Fuck
The Police
In the 1980s, Los Angeles was a
place full of racial tension and police brutality. In 2016 things are still far
from perfect, but today people are constantly connected and therefore are more exposed
to the injustices and the unfair treatment of African Americans by police. In
1988 the Compton rap group N.W.A released their highly controversial song Fuck Tha Police on their first album, Straight Outta Compton. The song was
something people could get behind, especially those who were seeking out
justice for unfair treatment by law enforcement. Those who have experienced
these injustices first hand felt like they finally had a voice that could speak
on their behalf.
N.W.A was a group that was never
afraid to speak their minds. They carried around an attitude which made them
intimidating while at the same time admirable. The A in the acronym does stand for
Attitude, and it was present in their music, lyrics and personas. The
lyrics were controversial. The beats were hard hitting, in your face and fast
paced. The group formed by Andre Young (Dr. Dre) consisted of his neighborhood
friend O’Shea Jackson (Ice Cube) who wrote most of the raps, Lorenzo Patterson
(MC Ren) a skilled lyricist, Antoine Carraby (DJ Yella) who manned the turn
tables, and of course Eric Wright (Eazy-E) who was the grandiose, outspoken
lead rapper.
N.W.A had developed a following of
fans in Compton and the surrounding areas years before their first studio album
together. Dre and Yella had gained notoriety from being in World Class Wreckin’ Cru and Cube had attracted some fans from his
time rapping with Cru In Action. In 1987
the group released a compilation album titled N.W.A and the Posse and really began forming their image as a
group. Even though the group was still in its infancy when the controversial
song was released, their collective voices were well respected within the
community. Plenty of people may have had similar feelings as N.W.A had towards
police, but it was N.W.A who had gained enough of a platform within the hip hop
community to shake things up. This song and its message along with its
controversy pushed the issue of police brutality to the forefront and allowed
others outside the affected communities to take notice of the group and its
message.
The rhetorical object here is the
entire song. N.W.A was sending out a message to the world that police brutality
exists, they’ve seen it up close and personal, and that they were tired of it. When
the track begins, Ice Cube immediately mentions how police treat African Americans
with the opening lyric; fuck the police
coming straight out the underground/ a young nigga got it bad ‘cuz I’m brown/
and not the other color so police think, they got the authority/ to kill a
minority. From the get go, the song takes the form of a protest. Cube opens
up the song stating that if you’re a minority or are dark skinned you are going
to have a hard time with police because they treat minorities different. Cube also
furthers his statement by saying that he’s not the other color, meaning white,
so because of that, police think it would be allowed to treat him badly, beat
him or even kill him.
The story about the songs origin
claims that Ice Cube and the rest of the group were standing outside of a
recording studio when two officers came up to the group and began questioning
them. Immediately the officers had them get down on the ground while they were cuffed
and searched. When the groups manager, Jerry Heller came out to defuse the
situation, the police told him they just needed to ‘check these bangers for drugs’. The claim was supported in the bio
pic based on the group Straight Outta
Compton. Ice Cube immediately began writing down the lyrics and recorded
the song that day (Grey). These were young musicians trying to make a name for
themselves. Upcoming rappers who finally had the chance to record a proper
album. The police did not see it that way. The police seemed to only see the
color of their skin. It was as if the police only saw another opportunity to
oppress a minority. When the group released this song they tugged on the
emotional strings of their audience, especially those who had been affected
first hand by police brutality or unfair treatment.
The groups purpose with the song was to shed
some light on what had been going on in the hood for too long. It was social
injustice at the hands of police which sparked the Watts riots of the 60s. Although
the fires of Watts may have been extinguished long ago, tensions from Watts are
still smoldering today, and a fire still burns in the memories of many. Today
the song has been adopted by some among the Black
Lives Matter movement. With all of the fatal shootings by police across the
country in the last couple of years, this song remains relevant. Not just Ice
Cube but the entire group felt they needed to bring these issues to the
forefront. In a 2015 interview with Billboard Magazine Ice Cube said he wanted
to make a song people from his community could rally around (Gale). Cube tried
to warn people about what was going to happen. Although all members were
talented in their own way, it was Cube who was the more conscious and political.
The reason this song has such
staying power and timelessness is because not too much has changed since the
late 80s. During this time, the group was seeing and experiencing all these
same injustices as today. Ice Cube experienced this first hand one night while
walking in front of his house, he was mistaken for another person and pushed up
against a cop car and searched while bystanders including his parents stood by
(Grey). For example, in 2011 612 people were killed in L.A county and 54 people
were killed by officers or deputies, almost 70% more than in 2010 (Ruben). In
2015 the Department of Justice issued a report stating that Ferguson Police
showed a pattern of clear racial disparities and discriminatory intent prior to
and during the protests (Wihbey). Racism is still alive, its just that some
people are good at concealing it.
All of these issues have an effect
on the way the public views law enforcement. However, it can be difficult to
see things through the perspective of a police officer. Its understandable how emotionally
and physically demanding the job must be, but many people all over the country
and the world appreciate the hard work and the risk police take everyday. The
thing people are after is accountability. People are seeking fair treatment,
accountability and an end to racist behavior by those entrusted to protect us.
People are tired of seeing unarmed individuals fatally shot by police. A USA
today poll from August 2014 found that Americans of all races give relatively
low marks to police departments across the nation when it comes to holding
officers accountable for misconduct (Wihbey). In the previously mentioned
Billboard interview, Cube agrees that not all police are bad or racist but
thinks those who do act in that manner should be held accountable (Gale).
Its always been the songs which
contain an important message or evoke a certain kind of emotion which stand the
test of time. This song managed to do both. The song has not lasted so long on
mere controversy. The song was bold and brash but by doing so it sent a message
that police brutality and racial injustices were recognized and would not be
tolerated. Dre and Cube went on to establish successful brands for themselves,
they both continue to be well respected in the entertainment world. Eazy-E
sadly passed away in 1995 after losing a battle against AIDS. MC Ren and DJ
Yella went on to live normal lives away from the spotlight. Although the group
split up in the mid 90s the music which they created together will be a song to
rally around while rallying against police injustices and unfair treatment of
minorities. Hopefully relationships can improve between minorities and police,
but so long as there is injustice at the hands of police, this song will
continue to be a staple for those going through it.
Works
Cited
Straight
Outta Compton. Dir. F. Gary Grey. By Andre Young. Screenplay by Jonathan
Herman. Perf. O'Shea Jackson Jr., Corey Hawkins, Paul Giamatti, Jason Mitchell.
Universal Pictures, 2015. Film.
Goldstien,
Rich. "A Brief History of the Phrase "Fuck the Police""
Thedailybeast.com. The Daily Beast, 23 Aug. 14. Web. 14 Sept. 16.
Ruben,
Joel, and Sarah Ardalani. "Killings by Police Jump Sharply."
Articles.latimes.com. Los Angeles Times, 12 June 2012. Web. 14 Sept. 2016.
Wihbey,
John. "Research on Law Enforcement and Racial Conflict."
Journalistsresource.org. Journalist's Resource, 28 July 2016. Web. 14 Sept.
2016.
Mozingo,
Joe, and Angel Jennings. "50 Years after Watts: 'There Is Still a Crisis
in the Black Community'" Latimes.com. Los Angeles Times, 13 Aug. 2015.
Web. 14 Sept. 2016.
Gale,
Alex. "Ice Cube: Police Have Become Our Worst Bullies."
Billboard.com. Billboard Magazine, 13 Aug. 2015. Web. 14 Sept. 2016.
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