THE SONG ALRIGHT BY KENDRICK LAMAR FULL

Photo illustration by Lisa Larson-Walker. The song, for those protesters, seems both a way to be defiant and proud in the face of those who don’t see you as anything more than a “race-baiter” or a “thug”-and a way to mark the moments when protest seems to make a difference. What the viral clip of the Cleveland protesters doesn’t make clear is that, according to ABC 5 Cleveland, the chanting of “Alright” came after the boy was treated by emergency medical technicians and then released to family members, instead of being taken to the police precinct-what some at the scene considered a small victory. Demonstrators gathered around the scene, locked arms, and were pepper sprayed by police. It’s worth looking at the context in which those Black Lives Matter protesters were chanting “Alright.” The activists had convened for a conference in Cleveland when an allegedly drunk 14-year-old boy was arrested outside the venue and allegedly roughed up by police. The Lord will see us through, The Lord will see us through,

“We Shall Overcome,” which in its early incarnation had slightly different lyrics (and the title “I’ll Be All Right”), is likewise optimistic:

THE SONG ALRIGHT BY KENDRICK LAMAR FULL

Sing a song full of the hope that the present has brought us,įacing the rising sun of our new day begun, Sing a song full of the faith that the dark past has taught us,

The song alright by kendrick lamar