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Filmmaker Spike Lee spent a few weeks in 2018 documenting migrants' experiences at the U.S.-Mexico border for The Killers' "Land of the Free" music video, over which he reportedly was given full creative control. (Photo: YouTube/screenshot)
Watch: Devastating New 'Land of the Free' Music Video Decries Violence and Cruelty of Trump's America
Set to a short film by Spike Lee, The Killers take on Trump's wall, tear-gassing of asylum-seekers, mass incarceration, and gun violence
Jan 14, 2019
In a powerful indictment of cruelty across the United States, The Killers' new song "Land of the Free"--released Monday with a devastating music video directed by Spike Lee--decries President Donald Trump's proposed border wall, the dehumanization and abuse of asylum-seekers, mass incarceration, institutional racism, and the nation's refusal to address the epidemic of mass shootings and gun violence.
Watch:
Taking on Trump's widely denounced immigration policies, frontman Brandon Flowers sings:
Down at the border, they're gonna put up a wall
Concrete and rebar steel beams (I'm standing, crying)
High enough to keep all those filthy hands off
Of our hopes and our dreams (I'm standing, crying)
People who just want the same things we do
In the land of the free
"Incarceration's become big business," he notes, "And we got more people locked up than the rest of the world." Written partly in response to mass shootings that have become all too common in this country, he asks, "So how many daughters, tell me, how many sons, do we have to have to put in the ground, before we just break down and face it: We got a problem with guns?"
In a message posted to Facebook, Flowers recalls how his grandmother and her family fled to U.S. "from Lithuania to escape the USSR's oppression," opting to work "in dangerous coal mines, rather than endure tyranny at home." Condemning "too many examples of racial injustice to ignore," including the tear-gassing of migrants at the border, he concludes: "I see my family in the faces of these vulnerable people... you've gotta believe that we can do better."
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This country and this world are at a monumental crossroads. US voters have an opportunity to beat back the forces of fascism and confront the billionaires who are rigging the economy, our media system, and our democracy, making it increasingly impossible for ordinary people to get by. We’re not just talking about the election. We’re talking about what must be done once these fascist elements are vanquished from power. We need a bolder set of solutions than what either major party has so far been willing to offer and a working-class movement ready to fight like hell for it. Trump didn't emerge from nowhere. The conditions that fueled MAGA authoritarianism were created by decades of radical neoliberal economic policies and a corrupt political system dominated by corporate interests. They slashed taxes on the super-rich, promising that the benefits would trickle down. They said giveaways to the corporate titans would make life more affordable for the rest of us. It was all bullshit. And when a bitter, betrayed populace searches for someone to blame, right-wing demagogues have little trouble finding scapegoats. People know when they're being lied to, but you won't hear any of this from the corporate media. Only independent journalism—powered and funded by people who believe in building a better world—can deliver truly trustworthy daily news. If you share our vision, please contribute whatever you can to sustain our work. |
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In a powerful indictment of cruelty across the United States, The Killers' new song "Land of the Free"--released Monday with a devastating music video directed by Spike Lee--decries President Donald Trump's proposed border wall, the dehumanization and abuse of asylum-seekers, mass incarceration, institutional racism, and the nation's refusal to address the epidemic of mass shootings and gun violence.
Watch:
Taking on Trump's widely denounced immigration policies, frontman Brandon Flowers sings:
Down at the border, they're gonna put up a wall
Concrete and rebar steel beams (I'm standing, crying)
High enough to keep all those filthy hands off
Of our hopes and our dreams (I'm standing, crying)
People who just want the same things we do
In the land of the free
"Incarceration's become big business," he notes, "And we got more people locked up than the rest of the world." Written partly in response to mass shootings that have become all too common in this country, he asks, "So how many daughters, tell me, how many sons, do we have to have to put in the ground, before we just break down and face it: We got a problem with guns?"
In a message posted to Facebook, Flowers recalls how his grandmother and her family fled to U.S. "from Lithuania to escape the USSR's oppression," opting to work "in dangerous coal mines, rather than endure tyranny at home." Condemning "too many examples of racial injustice to ignore," including the tear-gassing of migrants at the border, he concludes: "I see my family in the faces of these vulnerable people... you've gotta believe that we can do better."
In a powerful indictment of cruelty across the United States, The Killers' new song "Land of the Free"--released Monday with a devastating music video directed by Spike Lee--decries President Donald Trump's proposed border wall, the dehumanization and abuse of asylum-seekers, mass incarceration, institutional racism, and the nation's refusal to address the epidemic of mass shootings and gun violence.
Watch:
Taking on Trump's widely denounced immigration policies, frontman Brandon Flowers sings:
Down at the border, they're gonna put up a wall
Concrete and rebar steel beams (I'm standing, crying)
High enough to keep all those filthy hands off
Of our hopes and our dreams (I'm standing, crying)
People who just want the same things we do
In the land of the free
"Incarceration's become big business," he notes, "And we got more people locked up than the rest of the world." Written partly in response to mass shootings that have become all too common in this country, he asks, "So how many daughters, tell me, how many sons, do we have to have to put in the ground, before we just break down and face it: We got a problem with guns?"
In a message posted to Facebook, Flowers recalls how his grandmother and her family fled to U.S. "from Lithuania to escape the USSR's oppression," opting to work "in dangerous coal mines, rather than endure tyranny at home." Condemning "too many examples of racial injustice to ignore," including the tear-gassing of migrants at the border, he concludes: "I see my family in the faces of these vulnerable people... you've gotta believe that we can do better."
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