Hip hop is on the move

-

One of the most inspiring things about the generally dull election this year has been the radicalisation of hiphop culture. The release of Home Brew and Tourettes's track Listen to us, the mobilisation of Maori voters by South Auckland hiphop artist Young Sid and the release of Genocide's anthem Stand Up for Mana show that the mood is shifting amongst youth. John Key's Government isn't just passively disliked but now actively hated and campaigned against by the organic intellectuals of the young, poor and the restless.

The aggressive and racist tactics of the New Zealand police towards first Tiki Taane in Tauranga and just recently Scribe in Wellington for freestyling an anti-police rap is illustrative of the arbitrary and discriminatory nature of New Zealand's justice system where young Maori and Polynesian men are targeted and profiled by an aggressive police force disconnected with the communities they operate in.

Maybe the clearest sign that hiphop is on the move is the standing of activist rapper Jayson Gardiner as a Mana Movement candidate in Tauranga. His latest track People's Party clearly shows the potential of Mana to bring radical, anti-capitalist, pro-Maori, working class politics to young people around the country. Gardiner, coming from the site of the Rena grounding and an area of New Zealand with high youth unemployment may quickly emerge as the voice of a restless generation revolution that won't pay for the crisis and can't wait for change.

If the hiphop generation in Mana follows their comrades overseas into becoming generation revolution then it will cause shockwaves across Aotearoa and inspire youth in our Pacific neighbours like Fiji, Tonga and the Solomon Islands to rise up as well.

Comments

Post a Comment

Popular posts from this blog

Commentary fron an American member of Socialist Aotearoa

-
Image
My Two Cents By Laura Hardin As with any presidential election, the American pubic will once again be asked to head to the polls to test which campaign slogans proved more effective. We can either vote for the fairy tale of “hope and change” or we can cast our vote for the “Maverick’s from Main Street.” The McCain/Palin ticket has just recently been trying to lure the middle class with their new Main Street myth, an attempt to portray themselves as sympathizers who understand how this economic crisis is affecting the majority of America. In the Vice Presidential debate last Thursday Palin said that credit markets is where "mainstreeters like me" would feel the effects of the meltdown. And earlier last week, presidential nominee John McCain said of the bailout, “The first thing I’d do is say, ‘Let’s not call it a bailout. Let’s call it a rescue,’ Because it is a rescue. It’s a rescue of Main Street America.” You know what you’ll find on most Main Streets in most American towns
Read more

Jacinda Ardern’s Resignation Is Anything But Simple - It’s Time For The Left To Organise

-
Image
Interview with Joe Carolan by Jennifer Pannell. The sudden resignation of Jacinda Ardern, the Prime Minister of New Zealand and Labour Party Leader, on the 19th January this year was a shock to many around the world. She was held up by the global mainstream press as a beacon of strong and empathetic leadership in the face of numerous crises throughout her two terms. In her emotional resignation speech, she gave little hint as to why she was stepping down, stating “having reflected over summer I know I no longer have that bit extra in the tank to do the job justice. It’s that simple.” ' As a socialist, Joe, what’s your analysis of why Ardern resigned? There is a narrative that as a female Prime Minister, she experienced vicious, relentless trolling - death threats and attacks from a deeply misogynistic far-right led mob, who thought she was a dictator, a tyrant, a Communist. This is similar to the ideology used by the far-right in many other countries; in America, in Ireland, etce
Read more

AS CAPITALISM CRASHES< THE RESISTANCE GATHERS! Rally Against Low Pay- $15 per hour minimum wage now!

-
Image
Please Print Out, Copy and Put up! The weekend before the election, join the rally for a decent minimum wage- $15ph NOW! For posters and leaflets, contact Joe at 021 1861450 RALLY AGAINST LOW PAY- $15 per hour minimum wage now! As Capitalism crashes, the resistance gathers... Event Info Host: Socialist Aotearoa Type: Causes - Rally Time and Place Date: 01 November 2008 Time: 14:00 - 17:00 Location: Aotea Square Street: Queen Street Town/City: Auckland, New Zealand View Map Google MapQuest Microsoft Yahoo Phone: 0211861450 Email: solidarityjoe@yahoo.com The Gathering Storm. In recent months, low paid people have taken strike action in casinos, banks, fastfood outlets, supermarkets and on the busses. Low pay is crippling a generation of workers who are now expected to bear the brunt of a vicious global recession. It's time the resistance gathered. We're not going to pay for their crisis. We're not going to endure low pay anymore. A new generation is going to resist the Glob
Read more