What Is Your Reaction to Childish Gambino’s ‘This Is America’?

I was confused on what was going on in the video until i had my mom and dad explain it to me. It's about how our country has many flaws to it. In the video it shows how there is still racism in the world and how there are multiple shootings going on in churches, schools, and in the the streets.

I think the video was funny and amusing

Q. — What moments in the video or lyrics in the song stand out to you most? Why? A. I would say when he shot the choir because he was demonstrating how this as America and innocent people die every day and it’s basically accepted. Q. — What message do you think Donald Glover is sending with this video? How is he defining America? A. “This Is America” and that it’s messed up and accepted. Q. — Do you agree with this message? Why or why not? A. Yes, I want to say no, but it’s true, and people are basically okay with it. Q. — What is your overall reaction to the video and why? A. It’s the cold hard truth. Q. — Which insights from the article were most striking to you? Which ones challenged your thinking? Explain. A. I would say the fact that it’s true and we are doing little about it.

Gregory Amenta California MY reaction of the video was first of shock, even though I heard a little bit about the video, I turned away when I saw Gambino shoot up the church choir in the video. However, the next couple of times I started to really appreciate it. What frustrates me a lot of the time is when artists make a super abstract video. Most of the time, they are experimenting with ideas- but I try to see the message behind it. I liked Glovers video as he intended there to be a message behind it, even more he didn't clarify what the message was. In other words the message could be anything. I thought the message is how people are not doing enough about gun violence, as we are normalizing while throwing people like the man with the bag over his head under the bus. The moment that really struck me while watching was seeing the kids looking down below at the violence through their phones. If you think of nearly any tradegy after 2008 it was almost certainly captured by iphone, uploaded on the Internet, free for any kids to see. The second thing that struck me was how every time Donald Glover committed a shooting the gun would be carried away on a red carpet. This kind of reminds me about how the NRA and other pro-gun organizations care much more about the protection of their weapons than people's lives. I support this message of the video, but I am sure other people have messages of their own some of which I agree with some I don't.

This controversial music video brought a lot of attention to different meanings and intentions of the video. The title itself "This is America" makes it obvious his intention of the video was the show how America has become so accustomed to this gun violence. The purpose of Donald Glover's video is to show the race and gun violence in America. The “This Is America” video, which already has 20 million views, reveals provocative imagery of the rapper as he guns down a choir and dances while violence breaks out all around him. The video can be interpreted in many different ways. However, my response to this video is how upsetting it is that everyday people are killed and America is used to it.

Donald Glover's video can be interpreted in many ways. If I learned anything from the video and the CNN article, its that media often distracts people from the multiple deaths happening around the world. For example, the Royal Wedding between Prince Harry and Megan Markle happened a few days ago, but so did the tragic Texas school shooting. My Instagram, Twitter, and Facebook feeds were filled with pictures and videos from the wedding. It made me realize how fast the media can distract others. If someone posts about losing a loved one to gun violence, why doesn't it get as much attention? Because the media has the power to pick and choose what it wants to trend. The lyric that stood out to me the most is, "This a celly, that's a tool." I understood this line right away. Glover was trying to say that the moment something happens, our first instinct is to record, instead of help. That's definitely wrong since most problems could easily be avoided if someone from the side had the courage to intervene and work it out, instead of recording. The next lyric that stood out to me was, "Guns in my area." In the beginning of the video, a man is shot and the gun is treated nicer than him. The gun is carried out in a red cloth while the man is being dragged off. It just shows that the NRA would rather protect the guns that give them money, instead of innocent people.

The moment that surprised me the most was when right in the beginning the happy music stopped and the man shot the other man. It was very unexpected and kind of confusing at first. Donald Glover is trying to send out the image of America. Everyone is happy and joyous but under all the happiness there are shooting and innocent people dying. I completely agree with this message. America has been in a downfall, shooting almost every week, innocent people dying, it's crazy. The video is very creative and shows a great example of America today.

During the song, Bambino uses a lot of secret messages to get his point across. He keeps stating "This Is America" to show how our government, not our people, look at situations: ignoring the fact that there's something wrong and wait until someone else solves the problem. When i first heard the song, I already knew that all that he is saying is true. Our leaders just look at a problem and ignore it or try to redirect our attention to another situation. Overall, Childish Gambino's song should open the eyes to everyone that there is something wrong with out country.

I agree with everything he said the the song and every action in the video .Gambino has sheds a light on a part of america that we have left in the dark. No one wants to acknowledge that american if filled with violence and racism .

What message do you think Donald Glover is sending in this video? How is he defining America? Donald Glover is trying to spread the message about racial related gun violence in America. He did this in the music video by showing gun violence toward black people. There is a scene where a black choir is innocently singing but then are all suddenly shot dead. This can represent black people living in America who are innocent yet get shot for no good reason. Throughout the video, Glover and a few background dancers continue to dance around the set and stay unbothered as chaos is unleashing around them. Behind them there are cops chasing black people. The dancers ignoring the violence happening right near them can represent the American government ignoring the police brutality that is happening in our country and not taking any action to prevent it from continuing. During the closing scene of the music video, Glover is running from what looks like a group of white police officers. These scenes all represent America’s police brutality and gun violence. Donald Glover is defining America through this music video by saying that this country is full of racial related gun violence, and we are doing nothing to stop it.

The beauty of Donald Glover's "This is America" is how it uses a myriad of references to lay out a concealed yet profound issue in American society: that the entertainment industry is used to enshroud the more prominent controversies in America such as gun violence and racial inequality. What I found most interesting wasn't the amount of references he made (such as those towards the Charleston church shooting), but the way he delivered it. The frame is purposefully closed to emphasize America's close-mindedness. Glover's dance moves and music takes distracts the audience from the bigger picture. I didn't even notice the man jumping off the ledge at around minute 2:15 until I watched it three or so times. The references that Glover makes are the problems that America needs to address. However, the point of view and frame of reference utilized in the music video point emphasize America's ignorance to such problems. The frame of reference represents the view point of the average American. It is partly our fault that these problems aren't addressed. We are so encapsulated by the music and what's seen as "interesting" that it takes away from the larger problems that need to be addressed. It seems that the very end of the music video was Glover's call to action. While there are many interpretations to what that running could have symbolized, I took it as Glover escaping the America that has tortured him. The references to anarchy (etc) emphasizes his main point.

At first, when I watched it I did not notice anything I was just watching and listening to the song as if it were any other song that comes out for the first time. then I went back to Instagram and saw a lot of post on the hidden messages that the video portrays. When I watched it again I noticed that the gun that was shot in the beginning to of the video was handled with care and the man's body was dragged away. I think in this scene Gambino was trying to target at gun violence and how people think that guns should be protected while the person who was being shot at is handled like they are the wrong person in the situation. Another thing I noticed is that during everything that was going on their was people recording on their phones and people dancing. This makes me think about how people are more worried about the new dance crazes and recording rather than thinking about the real serious situations like gun violence and police brutality.

My interpretation of this was that our nation prioritizes the Second Amendment rights over the lives of innocent people. The article also contained something about the video that I hadn't seen. We as Americans are so quick to focus on the image of pretty pictures in the ground, all the while ignoring the struggles of the people less fortunate. Overall, I think Donald Glover's message true and pretty clear to what he is trying to say in the video, America is not the perfect, shiny country that people assume it to be.

After carefully analyzing this satirical music video, I realized that Gambino uses his entertaining dance moves and lyricism to distract viewers from the chaos that occurs in the background. This is to display the way that people are distracted in our country from the chaos that occurs everyday. The media does a good job in doing so. The dance moves definitely stand out as I am curious as to exactly what they symbolize. I also think the 17 seconds of silence to remember the 17 students killed is an impactful moment in the video. I think Gambino created this video to make people aware of what goes on within our nation. He attempts to bring light to the situation. I feel the video is impactful and disturbing however, I feel it is something that needs to be shared and reflected upon by the people.

When Gambino is dancing with the kids while chaos is in-sighting in the background. It pokes fun at how the media can easily cover up real world problems with viral dance crazes. — He is saying that America is screwed up basically. You can see this when bodies of the people he kills are dragged away like trash, but the gun he uses is handled like a new born baby. — I do because its a messages everyone knows is true, but no one wanted to say. — Overall I am impressed by how much he was able to sneak into the video.I felt as if each time I watched it I saw new messages, and imagery. — The insight on the gun violence was definitely the most eye opening. It really spoke down to the deeper meaning and lust that America has with guns.

Something that I realized after watching this 5 times is that I was mostly distracted by the dancing rather than everything happening in the back. Like people today would all watch the dancing in the video rather than everything going on in the back when first watching this. I think the message he is sending is that America is ignorant and gun violence is INSANE now. Eveytime he shoots someone he places the gun in a nice, fancy blanket. Also, kids are just standing around recording everything on their phone. And yes I agree that we are ignorant. This video was great and I looked everything about it.

What surprised me was when he shot the guy in the back of the head and carefully cleaned off the gun and took it away. While leaving the guy on the ground. This surprised me because nobody gave the dead man any attention. The message I think he is trying to convey is there is a gun violence epidemic in America especially against African Americans. He is defining America as a county with a problem that needs a solution. Yes I agree with this message because recently I seen an increase in gun violence against African Americans and youth but nothing has been done to fix it. The government doesn't seem to really consider it a issue. I think the video had a really strong message behind it. It's nice to see somebody use their platform to speak out against these issues portrayed in a way that really grabs the viewers attention

— What message do you think Donald Glover is sending with this video? In my opinion, the message that he is sending is that America pays more attention to whats popular, rather than the actual things that will matter for the next 50 years. How is he defining America? He is saying that America isn't all about prosperity and success, but more about what is being done to achieve that. — Do you agree with this message? There are some parts of it that I agree and parts that I disagree with. Why or why not? The parts that I don't agree with are parts that I don't agree with because I don't feel as if all of America follows what is popular. There are some people that just go on with their life and don't get hung up on anything that is pointless.

Did anyone notice that the dance that Childish Gambino, et al does in the video resembles the one on Jack does on Black-ish when he tries to make everyone laugh?

The first time I heard Gambino’s ‘This is America’ was when I was reviewing songs on SliceThePie, a website that pays you for your reviews on songs, music videos, and logos. After a few verses, I was hovering at the average mark when Gambino did something I realized immediately as immensely symbolic: he pulled out a gun, shot a hooded figure, and stated, “This is America.” I watched, slightly disturbed yet intrigued, as Gambino proceeded to dance, act, and shoot his way through the song. What came to mind was the lax on on gun control and the frequency of gun violence, which I felt was the main focus of Gambino’s music video. Along with the obviousness aspect of guns in the video, another key element that was noticeable was the hidden layers of racism. The video ends with a shot of Gambino heavily running down a dark corridor from what appears to be policeman, which instigated in my mind a sharp picture of the shameful yet well-known stereotype of a black criminal running from a crime. What I interpreted from the video was what I imagined would be a standard for everyone who watched the music video, a sense that Gambino was trying to push to our consciences a feeling of guilt, a sense that we knew about the current events that were happening in the place that we live in, but chose to either ignore it or to let it slide. What I gathered from the symbolism in the music video was that the image of America coexisted with a realistic picture of violence and of hate.

Today in class, my English teacher brought up the video. I had never seen or heard of the video, so of course I was curious. After watching it, I was overloaded with symbolism and imagery. The shocking scenes of violence were paired with light scenes of dancing. I noticed that the execution of the man playing the guitar could mean that self expression is not appreciated in our time. I also assumed that in the end, when it showed the darkened room is was symbol for what people and the media don't shed light on; the topics that everyday citizens don't know about. The horsemen of the apocalypse references to Jim Crow also were portrayed in the video, along with strong scenes and dark, intense clips. Our class analyzed it in the form of discussion, and a lot of my classmates had powerful points regarding the music video. A particular point that stood out to me was the handling of the guns. A classmate said that the guns were revered by the people in the film, while the dead bodies were dragged off with little respect. My interpretation of this was that our nation prioritizes the Second Amendment rights over the lives of innocent people. The article also contained something about the video that I hadn't seen. We as Americans are so quick to focus on the "pretty pictures" in the foreground, all the while ignoring the struggles of the people less fortunate. Overall, I think Donald Glover's message is clear: America is not the perfect, shiny country that people assume it to be.

Childish Gambino opens the discussion on America to at least the 89+ million viewers on YouTube. Many messages and questions. Let's talk.

The moment that most stood out to me in this video wasn't the acts of violence Gambino created, but it was the 17 seconds of silence for each of the lives lost in the Parkland shooting. It fit into the video well. I think Donal Glover is taking a satirical stance in order to criticize problems such as racism and gun violence. In my opinion Glover defines America as a heartless place where racism has not gone away but is hiding in everyday life of African Americans, as well as a place where even the young are not safe from gun violence, and the government does nothing about it. Putting aside my own personal music tastes I do understand and agree with the message Glover is sending, I see in my day to day life the institutionalized racism that is inherent even in our school systems. It took me some time to understand and appreciate the song itself and even longer to really understand the video, but I do understand that this is a very socially relevant piece and speaks volumes on the situation in America today.

In the video and the lyrics it really hit me when they were saying America is great and make lots of money, you are living the American dream in America. Then how it dramatically changes to the shooting and the violence with guns and his outfit representing our horrible past. The message is that America's name of greatness and wealthy and loving is false. He is defining America as fake! He is saying that we label and hid what we really are. We only like to focus on what could be great or what is great even if it is not being lived out. Uhh I kind of agree with this message it's true, but do I agree we should be living and acting like that, absolutely not. My reaction of the video is oh snap! Like it's true in a lot of ways also it puts in more of reality. Definitely the ones that hit me the most was the sudden shooting that also challenges my thinking. Like the reality of me showing up to school each day just like any other day and then "normal" can all come crashing down due to someone who is angry or upset or not in the right mind set; with a gun.

The message Glover is trying to send is that in America everyone has the chance to be happy and to love life but while many people are busy enjoying their life they don't stop to help the people struggling in the background. I do agree with the message because Glover is portraying the most in your face and realistic picture of life in America for African Americans and others who are struggling silently. My overall reaction to the video was shock due to how far Glover went to portray all of the outstanding problems in our society and all the little details that you can't find from watching the video through one time.

Admittedly, it was difficult to pay attention to the lyrics with all the things going on in the background. But there seems to be an emphasis on racial oppression. I think Glover is, in part, showing us the disassociation we have for racism and violence. For instance, the children sitting on a ledge filming the riot while cars and buildings burn in the background, and perhaps even further when he (Glover) shows no emotion after murdering several people. I cannot argue with the disassociation, as I have demonstrated it myself when watching the news or occasionally in real life (albeit on a smaller scale compared to the events in the video.) It was a well put together, carefully directed, smoothly executed performance that is chock full of symbolism and blunt reminders about the harshness of certain American cities. I imagine I will have to watch the video several time over to even get a grasp of the nuances crammed into four minutes of video.

What message do you think Donald Glover is sending with this video? How is he defining America? The message portrayed in this video is basically exposing satire involved in America throughout history. The video is defining America by displaying events throughout the video that resemble satiric events throughout America's history — Do you agree with this message? Why or why not? I agree with this message because it not only references a ton of satirical events, but it shows you that there is a lot of violent and gruesome acts that have been committed in America throughout history. — What is your overall reaction to the video and why? My overall reaction to the video is surprised, because this video contains so many references. Which these references can make others realise how much violence there actually was and is still involved in America.

I think the biblical symbolism of death riding a pale house revelation 6:8 is what stand out the most in the music video. The message I got from video was while there is conflict facing America we are distracting bye entertainment and media. I agree with part of the video message but part of it strikes me as incorrect or I'm miss reading the video. My overall thoughts on the video it's pretty good well made. I think this video is good for striking the raging consumerism of the American people.

This video related thing that is going on on this society. It also said that we don´t need to paying attention on it because is ours world. throughout the video where they dancing, gun were carry.

This song and video stands out from the rest of the artists. Childish bambinos talks about the struggles of America. America isn't the place of peace as it is portrayed to be by new comers. This song tells the truth about our "America" in present day. America is cruel in ways that we don't think about and the song shows the most common things that happen that we keep are eyes and ear "unaware" of or nonchalant about

Though there were many moments in the video that stood out to me, I noticed that throughout the violence and the dancing, each and every gun was cared for while wrapped in red cloth and handled with delicacy. That detail is unfortunately reflective of the way Americans are quick to protect their gun ownership and disregard the protection of black lives. The video emphasized how America pays attention to black people while they are entertaining, yet ignore the police violence occuring in predominantly black areas. I found irony that the "celly" (phones) that can be seen in the video and are described as tools in the song have been used for both recording black children dancing on social media and recording the deaths of black men and women by the hands of police. The video is simply bold. The powerful images and lyrics took me aback at first, but in the best way. Moments where artists use their works and platform to shed light on real and serious issues without trying to make it superficially acceptable to the majority audience excite me. It one of the best examples of free speech. Despite Donald Glover's wealth and probable detachment from the dangers of black inner cities, he still chose to challenge the perspectives of America that are held by those who choose to watch and listen to him.

This video depicts everything that is going on in our society. Consumed by phones and new trends that we aren't paying attention to everything going on around us. The things going on in the background are covered by the kids dancing and the things closer to the screen, which is a perfect depiction of our everyday lives. I love how accurate and modern it is, including dances that are trending. Although I had to watch it a few times, this video makes a loud statement.

Theres so much truth told in this video made by Donald Glover a.k.a Childish Gambino. From every analysis I've watched to my own interpretation on the video,there's always something new you can find. There are so many layers to this video for example the kids following every move that Childish Gambino does to represent how important music artist have on the lives of our youth. While the kids were following Childish you could see in the background riots happening, bystanders watching, or just completely chaos. But the kids are so focused on the music that they are turning a blind eye on the violence around them. One of my own reactions to this video is how Childish Gambino could be talking to many people in America like Kanye West who has recently come to the media saying many controversial things and Donald maybe could be talking to him about his impact as a role model for the youth and how Kanye should be careful for what he says in the media because he's an inspiration for many kids and artists.

I loved Donald Glover's video. In this video, every time you rewatch the video you notice something else. It's like the symbolism in this video is extreme and I love it. This video symbolizes how people are more distracted by mainstream media than noticing what's going on in the world. In the beginning, he grabs your attention by shooting the man that was playing his guitar. That man? That's Trayvon Martin's father. And what you also might have not notices was each time he shoots someone, the gun is covered up. I think this shows how we ignore gun violence in America. I also think the gospel choir that he shot is linked to the Texas church shooting in 2017. Some people might think this video was too harsh but the thing is, it's reality.

I loved the video and the message behind it. The happy world of people cheering and singing happily is suddenly shattered by reality and Glover reminding us that "This is America" and the world we live in. While Glover and his dancers are dancing in the front there's chaos in the background from the police rushing into the crime scene to biblical figure of death on his pale horse in the background and to me this is a representation of the state we're in:There's chaos all around us but we're too distracted by all the new dance trends or whatever's popular on social media to really see what surrounds us, sure there's lots of movements and people speaking out but I feel though these are just short burst and are later forgotten when a new spongebob meme comes around.

I think what Donald Glover is trying to say with the video,"This is America", is that America is a dangerous place and it needs to change. The video shows violence and chaos for no reason and that is the direction America is going in. He is saying we should stop being violent and we should change our ways so we can be more peaceful in the future. Donald Glover is sending us a message with this video, and if we listen, we can change today's violent, brutal America.