N.W.A.
Michael Robison 1st
The N.W.A. is a rap/hip-hop group from Compton, California that featured DJ Yella, Dr.Dre, Eazy-E, Ice Cube, and MC Ren. Between the years 1986 and 1991 they brought up major controversy due to their rap lyrics containing extremely explicit and offensive content. These lyrics consisted of the glorification of drugs, crime, sexism, and most importantly the rebellion and hatred for our national police department. Through this, the N.W.A. became a legacy that has had one of the biggest impacts on American music today.
N.W.A. - Express Yourself
The police department is only but a mere a product of government of which is exactly what N.W.A acted against through their use of music. In Henry Thoreau's article over Civil Disobedience it states that "to speak practically and as a citizen, unlike those who call themselves no-government men, I ask for, not at once no government, but at once a better government. Let every man make known what kind of government would command his respect, and that will be on step toward obtaining it." It is known that most of the N.W.A's hatred towards police is due to the black race constantly being mistreated due to stereotypes and assumptions based on skin color and flat-out racism. They rebel against this by using lyrics in songs like 'F*** tha police' to discuss how them and their race gets mistreated by police on a day to day bases. This relates to Thoreau's quote because N.W.A speaks up and demands respect from a government they believe is unjust, which is exactly what Thoreau wants the American people to do. In Civil Disobedience by Henry Thoreau, it's also stated that "It is not desirable to cultivate a respect for the law, so much as for the right. The only obligation which i have a right to assume is to do at anytime what I think right." This quote speaks on doing what you as your own person believe right or just, and not what the government thinks. This is an ideal quote because of the N.W.A's constant strive for the legalization of drugs (of which is brought up in the majority of their music) such as marijuana. They believe it is a right and okay thing to use marijuana but the government/police say otherwise which is another reason N.W.A rebels, simply by doing so, and speaking about drug use anyway, regardless of what anybody thinks. Overall, Henry Thoreau was a full supporter of freedom of speech, and rebelling for what the American people believe is right, and to not bring a selective morality into government; be it drugs or down right slavery, this makes N.W.A a perfect example of Civil Disobedience.